Scorpio's Legacy
by BlackenedAsh24
Summary: A young mid-western gamer goes on a camping trip with his friends one October and is thrown against his will into the Mass Effect Universe 12 years before Eden Prime. Follow Scorpio as he fights to find a way to survive over a decade of strife, try to find the truth behind his Legacy, and possibly find companionship in a young Prothean researcher on the way. (Scorpio/Liara) SI
1. Death's Touch

A/N This is something I've been working on for a LONG time. I originally started writing it back in November 2013, but I could never build up the courage to finally get an account at and get it out there until now so it's a bit old. Hopefully its still good! This is my attempt at a Mass Effect SI. Please Read & Review, I can take anything you throw at me!

* * *

"I would've never thought the impossible to exist, it's impossible for a reason right?" My mother said while bringing a speared head of broccoli to her mouth.

I look at her in absolute amusement, she always had a closed-minded view of the world, always pessimistic and paranoid.

_I myself am a bit more open-minded so I stop eating for a second and stare at her as if she had just turned into a bird and started squawking that the 'British were Chinese'._

She ignores me so I scoff and go back to my food.

Out of the corner of my eye I can see my dad ignoring both of us in favor of nursing his glass of water so no-one disturbs his nice meal. He was an army man, he did three tours in Iraq then decided to come home last year, he was the bravest person I knew and the only thing that scared him more then terrorists, was his wife.

"Honey, could you pass the salt?" He asks his wife, even though the salt was closer to me, he wanted to end any future debates between she and I, but mother saw right thorough him like always.

"Do you realize that ignoring your only son isn't the best way to re-start your relationship with him?" She sneers more then states after nearly slamming her fork onto the table.

I look up from my plate just in time to see my father blink and look at me almost ashamed. I turn and scowl at her, she always played to his emotions and it wasn't funny. Not one bit.

"Uh, son? Could you pass the salt?" He looks extremely uncomfortable at this point, why wouldn't he? He's never had to go up against mom-zilla before and he wasn't trained to deal with an angry house-wife in the army.

"Sure dad." I hand him the salt and smile at him to try to alleviate his nervousness.

He just nods and goes back to eating quietly.

"So, how was your day?" We look up and see mother staring at both of us, we pretend to not hear her and go back to our meals.

_It's been really awkward since my father came home. I like him and completely understand who he is as an introvert, I'm one as well, but my mother believes that isn't enough and forces us to be involved in the family. Hell before he came home we didn't even have dinner at the kitchen table! Then all of a sudden she expects us to be this perfect family as soon as he arrives._

I shake my head as I chew my steak.

_I've been eating where I'm comfortable for seven years and she just expects it all to be erased over night._

I sigh as I finally finish up my meal, dad looks at me and I can see in his eyes he wishes he could leave as well. He shouldn't have to suffer through these things.

Finally I look to my left and glare daggers at my mother as she takes a bite of toast. I catch her in the eye and she freezes, I had an extremely dangerous glare and she hated that it almost surpassed her own.

She puts the toast down after a few second and continues chewing while not backing down or blinking. I continue to glare and I see my dad start to shift uncomfortably out of the corner of my eye.

This goes on for about seven minutes until she finishes eating and can fully glare back.

_ Her eyebrows crease in concentration and her eyes spell murder, by her own definition she could stare down a gunman without anyone getting hurt with that look, and I believed her for much of my life. Until I found my own glare, I've been told it's like staring down the barrel of a gun that's pointed against your head and you hear a click, right before it fires._

Dad looks between us like we're the two alpha wolves about to fight over who could lead the pack.

I continue, my glare un-faltering.

_I have time, I always have time and she knows it. She on the other hand is very impatient._

She growls and throws her hands into the air before saying, "Fine! We don't have to eat at the table anymore! All I wanted was a nice family get together for all of us to share our day's events like a normal family, but apparently that's too much to ask for!"

I deepen my glare, "You do realize that we're extremely uncomfortable eating in public? So eating in front of each-other isn't going to be any better?"

She scoffs and pushes her chair back fast enough for it to fall over, "Fine! Then you can both just go back to your caves! I'm done, if you two don't want to talk to me then both of you can just fuck off!" She turns to leave, but just stands there for a moment. Dad goes to speak but I raise a hand to stop him and he slouches in his seat to pick at the rest of his meal. Finally, mother stomps off to her own room and slams the door, leaving us in silence.

_She was thrown out of her house at sixteen by her parents and forced to work three jobs to survive until she met dad so psychologically she developed an idea that if someone doesn't like her or if someone gets too close to her then she was going to get hurt, which AUTOMATICALLY meant her life means nothing, over the years it's manifested into paranoia and bitterness towards everyone outside of her house and work. Hell, it took two years for dad to convince her that he wasn't abandoning her by joining the army! I'm studying to be a psychologist and like to analyze people so that's what I've observed. I love her as my mother, but she has a lot of unresolved issues._

Dad sighs and says, "I'll go talk to her when she calms down, I am a bit curious how your day went though." I blink and shoot my eyebrows up to my hair-line to stretch out my face from the strain of glaring for twelve minutes straight. Damn, how the hell does my face not freeze like that?

I look over to him and say, "It was normal, a bit weird in the driving department, but overall I can't complain." He nods and finishes his water before we stand and collect our plates.

He looks at me and says, "Yeah, same here, I'm not sure why but it seems like all the slow drivers just pop out of the woodworks around four." I nod in agreement and we walk over to the kitchen and start washing the dishes like usual.

_It seems like this happens every night. We come home to relax and enjoy a meal and it turns into family share time, then a fight between me and mother breaks out that turns into her going to her room or ordering me to go to mine, and on the nights that she goes to her room David, I call my dad David, and I end up talking about our days once we finish our respectable meals. THAT is the daily dinner routine of our family, I think its pretty normal for our living situation. At least we aren't out on the street or in massive debt. My mother's paranoia is perfect for dealing with car dealers, bankers, sales people, pretty much anyone trying to sell something goes under her scrutiny until they break. It's just who she is I guess._

We finish washing the dishes and dry them before putting them away like usual. I nod to him and he nods to me, just a mutual respect between two adults. I already told him I hatted being called 'son' or 'kid' or 'boy' so we stick to names when in private and to appease mother we stick to tradition, even if it makes us feel uncomfortable. I'm nineteen for god sakes! I have a job! I pay rent! I'm going to College! I don't need to come home to being called a demeaning nickname out of _tradition_.

We walk down the hall towards our own rooms and he turns to me to say like usual, "Goodnight Dylan."

I nod to him with my hand on my door handle, "Goodnight David." He smiles when I say his name and we close the doors behind us, we knew what we liked to do, and it wasn't _bonding_.

_He has his sports and TV programming, I have my gaming and Internet connection. We're more like neighbors the way we act around each-other and we're fine with that approach._

I sigh and plop down onto my small twin-sized bed and bounce a bit before slowing enough to grab my controller, I had paused my newest game-play of Mass Effect 3 to go to dinner expecting to come back to eat in my small room/apartment. Only to be forced to eat in the dining room like usual.

_I would've just ran when I saw her setting the table but I couldn't leave David there alone. She caught him right at the door, still in his work clothes like usual._

I shake the memories away and look around my room/apartment, it really was an apartment, there's a bedroom and a bathroom all to my own liking that I kept maintained. Even my own small walk-in closet that I turned into a converted home office for my school work. Surprisingly I managed to fit a desk AND swivel chair in the small 1.5 square meter space. It was all really nice, just like a dorm room, but without a roommate.

_GOD I would've HATTED a roommate._

I let my hands set into their natural positions on my Xbox 360 wireless controller and smile as a comfortably familiar feeling of control sets in.

_I love gaming, it gives me a sense of false accomplishment that keeps me from remembering... certain things._

I check the journal on the pause menu to see where I was and I figure out I'm at the Cerberus Station, trying to defeat Kai Leng the slippery sack of proverbial shit on Insanity.

_If I ever meet him in real life I'm going to murder that son of a bitch without a second thought. He causes too much death and destruction to be allowed to live. And if I want to kill him out-right then he's so far beyond the tipping point that I don't even care about his well being, which is really saying something since I really hate killing sentient beings, real or otherwise._

I shake my head clear and focus, this was going to take everything my Adept Shepard's got. I un-pause the game and quickly dive into cover behind some hardware in the blown out floor and order Liara and Javik to do the same as three phantoms drop from the ceiling...

* * *

"There! Holy GOD! I finally finished Mass Effect 3 on INSANITY!" I nearly chuck my controller into the ceiling as I throw my arms up in excited elation. The Synthesis DLC ending starts to role and I lay back down onto my bed to think about how many enemies I had to flare to death during the missile part just before the push to the beam.

_I can still hear the screams of eight banshees cornering me and barely getting a hydra missile in to stall them before the sweet sweet sound of Joker's voice hit my radio and I could dash past four brutes and to the beam controls just as my health nearly hit it's last bar from all the banshees throwing a warp blast at me simultaneously. Man that was intense, and my Turtle Beach head-set made it so life-like that I nearly shit myself when I heard those Banshee's coming after me._

I shiver from the remembering the sound of multiple screeches echoing across the map as I killed another brute with a biotic explosion. Looking at the TV, I watch just in time to see Liara place Shepard's name on the memorial wall on the crew deck of the Normandy.

_I really hate that Shepard has to die through nearly every ending. I mean, you'd think he/she would find a way to defeat the Reapers without the Crucible, maybe an ancient super-weapon the Protheans made that blew up stars or something._

I scoff, "Yeah, like that's even possible. What's it going to look like, a huge cannon?"

I sigh and click the option after the credits to go to the main menu. Today was a great day.

*beep*

I raise an eyebrow at the familiar sound of my IPhone getting a message.

_"What you doing?"_ I check the sender and smile as I see it was from Dell. Dell was one of four people from my high-school that could actually stand to be around me for more then two minutes without flipping out and chucking textbooks.

_God do History books hurt! Why do they have to be so heavy?!_

Unlocking my IPhone I laugh a little at the _Dragon Age_ Tali wielding duel swords that stares back at me.

_I always liked anything and everything about Mass Effect, even if it references other equally awesome games._

Opening the texting app I use to save minutes I send a response to Dell, _"Not really anything, You?"_ We call him Dell since his real name was _Delesh _and nearly impossible to pronounce perfectly so we just gave him a nickname, he_ hates_ it.

*beep* I look at his instantaneous text. His texting skills were legendarily fast. He could text a 8000 word book report in half an hour if he really needed to.

_"Me and the guys were going to go out camping around the Great lakes."_

_"Right now?!" _I text incredulously.

*beep*_ "Oh god no! We were going to pack up and leave tomorrow, you wanna come?"_

I groan and stare at his text. I really didn't want to loose more gaming time, but he was usually REALLY persistent when planning activities.

_I remember one time when he somehow convinced me to set off every cell phone in our high-school with one group text! The school bellowed in a melody of swearing teachers and hundreds of chirps, rings, and short songs for an hour as the text looped! It was hilarious! Well, until they tracked the text back to us and we were suspended. Ahh the good old days..._

_"Sure, what time we leaving?_ I text back reluctantly.

*beep* I have really got to deactivate the alerts on this app, these beep's are getting frustrating. _"Woah! Who is this? I thought the legendary Scorpio would have put up more of a fight! HAHA! I'll pick you up at seven, your in charge of the lighter fluid and I know you have a freakishly awesome memory, but please don't forget OK?" _

I scowl, He knows not to bring that up! "_GOD when are you going to stop it with the Scorpio business!" _I text angrily._  
_

_"When it stops being funny!"_

I cringe. It wasn't funny not one bit.

_How long is that incident going to haunt me?!_

I blink as my solipsism starts to blur my vision in favor of that terrible day... "Oh great."

* * *

And just like that I was back in the old high-school library after dark on the night it happened.

I feel... strange. Like I was still working tirelessly on that Geology poster that was due the next day, glue sticking to my fingers.

'Why I don't use more tape is beyond me.' Memory me thought as he wiped the dried glue off his hands and onto a napkin nearby.

"Dylan, the Library is closing." He looks up in surprise to see the elderly Mrs. Hershal, as barely alive as she ever was, standing there with a cracked smile on her thin lips and a few over-due library books in her hands.

Memory me nods and starts to put away the supplies. "How she's still alive is beyond me." I hear myself mutter as she turned and walked out of ear-shot towards her small desk near the exit.

He looks down at his wrist and frown, 'When am I going to start wearing a watch?' I hear myself think. This is going to be vivid as hell I can already tell.

The vision blurs and I mentally shake my head to clear it up. I look around and see that I'm outside the high-school now, walking towards the parking lot. I can feel myself holding my Geology poster under my right arm and I can see myself tossing my car keys up into the air and catching them to a rhythm I can barely recall. Then I hear myself whistling a tune and focus on it for a moment before it clicks and I remember that I was whistling Radioactive by Imagine Dragons.

It's a great song-

"Help!"

I stop and drop my poster into a puddle from the leftover rain that fell that evening and feel myself struggle to catch my car keys. "Damn it." I could feel my brow furrow as I pick up the ruined poster sadly. I mentally freeze as I remember what this moment was.

Memory me looks around for who called for help.

Why couldn't I see her? It was a clear night! I could have stopped it! I never wanted any of this to ever happen! I watch helpless from my position as my memory self shrugs and continues on. I feel myself pick up the tune again and keep walking, oblivious to the attempted rape of my two year younger than me 16 year old cousin mere meters away.

Oh Sarah, I am so sorry...

"Mmmffff!"

I stop, that one was absolutely as plain as day. Memory me sets his backpack that held his IPhone and dagger down by the curb and search for the source of the noise.

That won't help what's going to happen next. I've already thought through everything going to happen and I couldn't find anything else I could have done differently, it still just pisses me off that I couldn't prevent it.

Sneaking into the bushes I hear myself gasp and I pay attention to the horrific scene before me. My brunette-haired, crystal-blue eyed cousin Sarah was lying face down in the grass with her pants torn off and a fat fuck of a pig holding her down as he raped her from behind. I mentally tear myself away and focus on everything but the terrible anguish and terror I could feel bleed through from the memory.

Sarah starts to cry, I can hear her soft innocent voice just... No, No I don't want to see this! I try and skip ahead or end the memory, but it was useless, I couldn't escape reliving it.

Memory me shakes in shock and horror as the sick scene unfolded before him. I feel tears start to slip from my eyes in the memory and focus as I remembered how torn I was. I see that somehow the... Rapist had gagged Sarah and I could feel the pure anger and hatred build in my heart as she pushes her face into the ground and somehow shakes her gag free. She turns her head to me and I can see the hopelessness that was in her terrified eyes, she screams, "HELP!"

The tears stop and the light in her eyes darken as the Rapist punches her in the back of the head, knocking her into the ground and completely unconscious. I remember that I thought she'd died then and there. My little cousin...

This is the part where I finally decide between fight or flight and I feel something snap inside of me.

I feel myself stop crying as a purely primal rage bursts from my heart as Memory me clenches his teeth in pure anger. I watch myself scowl as deeply as I could and dig my fingernails into my palms so forcefully that I dug under the skin.

I had never been that angry before in my life, A growl escapes my throat and I watch myself focus on the sick freak raping the girl I thought of like a sister.

I watch myself stand and sprint at him in an adrenaline-induced run and cringe as I feel myself slamming my entire body into his side, throwing both of us back and into a roll down the hill just behind the high-school and into a nearby recreational pond build by my father when he attended the school decades prior.

I've gone over this so many times I can recite the exact temperature the water was when we fell in, fifty three degrees Fahrenheit.

The shockingly cold water hits me and I feel myself freeze while looking around through the murky water before my instincts kick in and I resurface. I hear myself gasp for air and follow my eye-sight to the Rapist a few feet away. I feel my eyes widen in shock as memory me sees a glint of metal in the man's left hand.

Somehow I got a good kick in and knock him away before he could stab me with the large hunting knife.

I let the memory play and feel myself swim to shore as my adrenaline spikes again and climb away from the danger and back up the hill from before.

I see myself look back and gasp in even more fright that the man was quickly following me. I pick up my pace with new determination and run up the hill as he follows me, I sprint to my backpack and struggle with my damn broken zipper I kept forgetting to fix. Looking up I see him not three seconds away and in a moment of panic I threw my poster at him to distract him the soaking wet paper cylinder hits him in the face, staggering him just long enough for me to break my zipper open and rip my personal dagger I kept in-case of muggings out of its holder.

If I could have called the police I would have, but he was just too quick.

I had been trained by my dad in knife combat between deployments so I automatically spun the eight inch curved dagger around so the backside of the blade was against my forearm and held it out to block a swipe from the Rapist. I hear the two daggers clang together and I see myself stagger back from the strength of the man's attack.

I use the momentum to jump back and plant my feet before diving back into the duel. I cut upwards while moving out of the way of one of his lunges. I could feel my dagger cut deeply into his shoulder, scraping against his collar bone. I roll forwards and turn to see him kneeling over, his right arm bleeding badly. I can remember that I felt sorry for him for a split second before dropping into a defensive position as he puts his blade into his left hand and jumps back into the fight.

I spun my dagger in my right hand and watch him for a second, that's when I saw a slight limp in his left leg, he was going to work on quick jabs to compensate.

I watch Memory me hold his dagger in his left hand and rush forwards, he ducks under the Rapist's swipe and slides with his dagger to cut a gash into the Rapist's left leg, forcing the man to yell out a curse I can't remember.

I quickly turn to see the man fall fully to his knees and pant at the exertion. I feel myself smile as he turns his head to glare at me, his dark hardened blue eyes stood out from the calm evening. He smiles and I watch him in confusion. Then out of nowhere he chucks a rock at me, I hit the ground and barely miss it hitting me.

Memory me swallows and jumps up to find the Rapist running away, I feel myself pause and try to decide what to do before my muscles tighten and a shear fear jumps into my heart. He was running towards Sarah! I couldn't get to him in time. I almost give up but then out of a moment of inspiration I put the dagger in my right hand, spin it around to hold onto the tip of the blade and quickly tossed it as accurately as I could at the sprinting Rapist. Time stopped as I watched the blade fly through the air, spinning, spinning, until...

"AHHHHHHHH!" The dagger embeds perfectly into the spine of the sick man. I feel myself smile with elation as he falls to the ground and stops moving.

That was always an awesome throw to watch.

I watch myself walk cautiously up to and crouch next to the guy to see exactly where my dagger hit. It hit just between his shoulders, and was deeply embedded in his spine. I remember myself silently chuckling at how lucky a toss it was, any lower and he would have still had mobility in his arms, any higher and it would have killed him outright. I watch myself grasp the bloody hilt of the dagger and yank it out violently, the man whimpers at the sound of the blade scraping bone just before I notice he finally passes out from the pain.

Memory me stands, bloodied dagger clenched in his right fist as the blood continued to seep from the Rapists severe wounds and he just stands there, watching for a second to process what he just did. When he does a wide smile grows across his bloodied face and I can feel the pure bliss in my mind at that moment. I just stand there, and continue to watch him bleed out without doing anything to help.

I will never forgive myself for that.

My vision blurs and I can feel myself coming out of the solipsism...

* * *

When my sight returns to normal I'm still sitting on my bed, IPhone off to the side, Xbox 360 controller in my hands. "I haven't had that intense a flashback since the court-date." I shake my head and shiver as the last feelings of elation bleed from my consciousness. I lower my head in shame at what I did.

_ I never wanted any of that to happen._

I think back to what happened next and a shiver ran down my spine.

_I just stood there for twenty minutes until Sarah woke up and found me smiling down at the rapist's bloody corpse. I watched him bleed out... I watched him die..._

I shake my head and let the last lingering thoughts of the incident bleed from my mind.

_Thank whatever absent god was there that night that Sarah lived. I would have lost it if she hadn't. She even got lucky and developed PTSAD (Post Traumatic Stress Amnesia Disorder). She couldn't remember a thing._

Unfortunately for me I developed a type of enhanced memory ability from it, so I could never forget it.

_I've always had a great memory, but it was nowhere near what I have now. I can remember anything and everything, but only if I want to remember it. I could repress memories if I concentrated enough. The doctors and Neurological Specialists I've gone to named it PTSSEMED (Post Traumatic Stress Selective Eidetic Memory Enhancement Disorder). It's nice to put a name behind being essentially forced into solipsism whenever something reminds you of your cousin getting raped and you killing a man._

I sigh and just sit there as the next few weeks after the incident flood my mind.

They didn't arrest me since I was a minor at the time, barely, just by a few days. I remember how terrible I felt when I was sentenced to 600 hours community service and a $2000 fine my parents had to pay.

A scowl grows across my face, "600hrs for killing a man! How is that justice?!" I toss my controller across the room and cringe as it hit the wall and bounces back to hit the carpet and nearly come to rest at my old Xbox. I scramble over and quickly inspect it for damage. I sigh as I find it miraculously undamaged and start to get ready for bed.

They nicknamed me Scorpio, they thought it was going to be a way for me to rationalize the incident better. I sigh and shake my head in slight disgust, they got the idea from the bloodied the shirt I had worn that night. The shirt used as evidence that I never got back, it was a completely black T-shirt with a silver scorpion on the front and back. I used to love that shirt.

I throw my shirt and jeans into the hamper near the bathroom door and walk into the bathroom to brush my teeth. I pick up the green and blue electric tooth-brush and put the right amount of toothpaste onto it.

_I never wanted that to happen and everyone praises me for saving Sarah and killing the terrible man._

I look at myself in the mirror and see the aged appearance my tired brown eyes gave me.

_I'm nineteen and I look like I'm in my early thirties because of that one day._

I sigh and activate the tooth-brush and start brushing.

_I couldn't sleep for a year after I found out the man had a family, he had a wife, and two daughters! What right did I have to take his life away?!_

I finish up and rinse the last of the toothpaste out of my mouth before shaking my head and walking back into my bedroom. I grab my blanket and jump into bed, letting my head rest comfortably against the soft pillow.

"I need to get to sleep and if I keep thinking about it I'm never going to sleep again." I whisper before finally turning off the one lamp I kept on next to my bed and closing my eyes to try and get at least four hours before the nightmares returned.

* * *

**Blood smeared across the cement, the pavement wet from a light rain as the red liquid runs down the hard ground separating it from the sidewalk and seeps into a nearby drainage culvert, drip... drip... drip... drip. The night is cold, so cold that the fallen tears of an innocence lost is hardly known against the light dew frozen to the tips of freshly grown grass, and among it all is a girl, a young girl covered in the life-blood of her victim, the first victim...**

* * *

*HOOONK!* My tired eyes crack open at the sharp noise.

_Whatever it is it just saved me from reliving another nightmare._

I groan as I leave the nice warm comfort of my bed to investigate the noise. I look out my window and see a van, no an SUV, and it's over-filled with... camping supplies?

"Oh right, the camping trip." I yawn and rub the sleep from my eyes before shaking myself awake and starting my morning routine.

Ten minutes later I'm finished showering, shaving, and my basic oral hygiene. I look at myself in the mirror I worry that even one of these dreams are going to come true, but shake the thought away as I get dressed in the usual, Jeans and a dark gray shirt.

Next I grab my charging IPhone and back-up 5th gen Ipod touch before throwing on my black and gray coat while slipping on my black and gray _Nike_ sneakers. The doctors say that a routine helps people forget their past, I just do it because I like doing things a certain way. Walking to my bedroom door I stop at my key rack and grab my dagger from its place next to it.

I look at it for a moment. The slight curve in the eight inch long millimeter-thick compressed plate titanium-alloy blade, the black custom-made grip installed over the thin hilt that balanced the dagger perfectly while fitting my exact hand print perfectly as I gripped it, the strangely comforting Prothean symbols I carved into the blade itself to make it look more aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

_The dagger will never rust, never break, and holds an infinite amount of personal memories. So many that every time I hold it I have to consciously repress them to concentrate on the here and now._

The doctors said that having something to remind me of that night will only worsen my condition, I disagreed and we debated constantly on my mental stability until I just stopped going to check-ups and stopped taking the terrible narcotics they kept prescribing for me.

_If I have to learn to live with the past then repressing it with drugs wasn't going to help, I need to confront it and fight to control it otherwise I'm just weak and truly insane._

Turning the dagger around in my hand I sigh tiredly as my eyes land on the scorpion that was inscribed into the end of the hilt, the only thing that I love more then how perfect this dagger was is my family. Sadly nothing I can do will change any of thi- *HONK* *HONK* *HONK!* I whip my head towards the window and realize I was lost in my thoughts for three minutes. "God damn it." I strap the holster for it onto my belt and sheath it in its place before rushing through the house on 'ghost feet'.

That's what my parents named my freakish ability to walk without making any noise around the house, it really scares them that I could come and go without them even knowing since I don't really leave my room unless I'm hungry or, well, need to go to school and that's about it.

I take a quick side-trip through the camping supplies cabinet in the porch to get two cans of lighter fluid before practically jumping through the door and nearly running over Terry as she reaches for the doorbell. I wrap my arms around her and spin us around so I land on my back instead of her getting her glasses broke or anything scuffed. She stares at me in shock as we lay there on the driveway. Finally she brushes some of her short auburn hair behind her ear and says, "I-I was wondering when you were getting up."

She stands and hold out her right hand to help me up, "Thanks, I overslept for once in my life." She nods and a smile pulls at her pinkish lips, I look her over for any scuffs, I quickly check her black jeans and tan sneakers before looking over her fuzzy gray sweater and seeing the stitching in the right shoulder was loose, besides that everything seemed to be in order. She's been spending a bit too much time indoors again too since she's almost as white as the snow, her soft complexion only changed by a light patch of freckles around her nose. If Female Shepard wore glasses and home-made sweaters then Terry would be her exact twin.

"Ahem." We turn to see Dell standing there, arms crossed over his burgundy leather jacket he's had all throughout high-school, faded jeans still ripped in his left knee from an incident with his weed-waker two years ago, his short black hair shimmering from his obsession with oiling it to make him look like the lead character from _Grease. _He was of Italian decent so he could pull the look off, we still gave him shit for it though. "If you two are about done we need to get moving." We walk down the driveway, Terry leans back against the grill of the 2011 Jeep Cherokee Dell inherited from his uncle that passed away a few years back. "I was starting to think Scorpio decided to blow us off." Dell says sarcastically. I glared at him, he was usually the reason I flashed back to _that_ night and he knew that.

Terry knew too so she scowled and punched Dell in the arm while saying, "Shut it Dell! You know what that does to him! We agreed to stop calling him that!"

Dell pouts and rubs his arm, "Ow! Touchy! It was just a joke!"

Terry looks like she was going to slap Dell, but instead points a finger in his face and says, "It wasn't funny so apologize!" In all honesty the name barely even triggered the memory anymore, not since I connected it to the trial and not the night I earned that nickname.

Dell sighs and looks at me apologetically, "I'm sorry man, just trying to make up for all the crap you guys give me for my own name. Anyways, I didn't expect you to actually come after the _South Dakota Detour_." He's really going to get it if Mark is-

"DETOUR?! Is THAT what you call getting us lost on the way to Montana and ending up in _Mexico_?!" Mark's head pops out from behind the SUV to stare at Dell incredulously. His light brown hair still looks like Alistair's from Dragon Age I see, just like the day I met him. Huh, he grew out his goatee again. I thought Terry hated it.

I fake a cough to hide my laughter as Dell gawks at Mark and throws his arms up in exasperation, "That was an error in the GPS I told you!"

Mark scoffs and stops what he's doing to walk around to face Dell fully as he nods sagely and says, Yes oh powerful GPS programmer..."

Dell frowns and points a finger at Mark as he says, "Fuck off man I forgot the map so I did the best that I could!"

I hear Terry scoff and look at her as she folds her arms over her chest and raises an eyebrow at the two, "Yes, and the best you could manage was a bunch of side roads and a few '_maybe the freeway was that way_'s and BOOM we spend the next two weeks in fucking Guadalupe!"

I burst out laughing, "HAHAHAHAHA! GOOD, HAHA, GOD, HAHAHA THAT WAS A FUN SPRING BREAK! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" I double over and try to contain my laughter as images of those two weeks hit me, Dell swearing colorfully as he sees the Mexican signs pass by, Terry and Mark waking up next to a beach in shock, me getting a nasty sunburn from not wearing sunscreen for ONE day in week two. Good times...

Terry scowls at me, "Oh laugh it up Dylan, you were the only one who didn't take Spanish in high-school remember? We had to keep you within ten feet of us the entire damn time to avoid insulting the locals!" Dell raises an eyebrow and nods in agreement as well.

That cuts me out of my laughter. I frown at Terry and say, "Hey, I took French! I only knew _Hola_ and _Como Estas? _and I even screwed those up!"

Mark walks around from the back carrying two sleeping bags and says, "Yeah, what was that excuse you made when we were signing up for classes? Oh right! _'French is the way to get ALL the ladies'_." I blush as they all burst out laughing.

Terry wipes tears from her eyes, Mark desperately tries to not drop the sleeping bags as he doubles over, and Dell is rolling around on the driveway.

_They can laugh all they want! Lets see THEM get stranded in a French speaking African country and see how well they adapt! Lets see them get stranded in Africa and see how they'll like being killed for mis-pronouncing _Merci.

I throw my arms up as far as possible without tossing the two cans of lighter fluid I was still carrying and say, "Whatever! Hey can we get a move on? I want to get there before the lake freezes over."

Dell finishes laughing and pats me on the back, "Whatever you say man. You got the lighter fluid?" He said. I wave the two cans in his face and he takes them with a fake smile.

Terry nods to Mark and they all get into Dell's Cherokee with smiles on their faces. Mark behind the wheel, Dell right next to him in the passenger seat, Terry behind Mark like she always is. Ok, it's going to be a while until I see my house again. I turn to look at my window for a moment, letting the memories of my childhood wash over me for a while until I hear something, it sounds familiar, oh damn it I know what it is. I look at the front door and see my mother, in her morning clothes, glaring at me from the doorway. "Dylan!" she yells again, I can't even remember how many times I've heard her yell my name across the yard. Oh wait, give me a moment... five thousand, seven hundred and eleven. "DYLAN!" Five thousand seven hundred and twelve.

I cringe and focus back on her to apologize and clarify why she was woken up before ten am, "Sorry, I'm going with the guys on a camping trip."

Her eyebrows shoot way up and she looks at me incredulously, "In October?!" She asks.

I nod curtly and answer with a short, "Yep." She shakes her head again and sighs before waving her hand for me to go. "Thanks!" I call back as I quickly jog to the back passenger side and jump in. I buckle up as Mark looks behind him only to scowl at the huge amount of hunting crap blocking his view of the road. He looks at Terry and she just smiles and shrugs from the back seat of the SUV as it starts blindly backing out of the driveway.

I see her smile even more when the Jeep hops from him missing the curving driveway by a tire. "Son of a bitch!" Mark yells as he puts it into drive and tries it again, this time with the driver-side door open so he could see where he was going. The Jeep finally starts on the main road and I sit back to just listen to the senseless banter as we started the two day trip up to lake Superior.

* * *

(Two days later)

I yawn as my eyes open to be assaulted by sunlight. I slipped into a restless sleep during the last day up here, it seemed like a good idea since dell was getting rowdy and Mark was starting to slack off on the driving again. seriously if he asks me to do it I'd do it but Dell doesn't like the idea of a psychopath driving his baby. "Dylan, wake up! We're here." I rub my drowsy eyes and look to my left to see Terry smiling at my dazed appearance.

"Yeah, rise and shine sleeping beauty!" Dell pounds on my car-door, waking me up enough to not get mad at his impromptu criticisms.

I open the door and place a hand over my heart, looking at Dell as if I'm touched and ask, "You think I'm beautiful?" He stops unloading the tent and looks at me as if I was an Elcor asking that question.

He blinks for a second, seemingly thinking it over before saying, "Uhh... sure why not?" I can see Terry and Mark just barely containing their laughter out of the corner of my eye.

I pat him on the shoulder with a small smile on my face and say, "Thanks man, I could always count on you to be that one person that brightens up my day." He blinks and stares at me incredulously as I start unpacking the rations. Terry and Mark's eyes are as wide as saucers as well.

I'm not surprised they're shocked, usually I make a joke or call him a softy, this time I'm actually happy he took the time to consider how I look. I pause and think about what I just thought. "Ok, I am really getting dehydrated or something, that was the weirdest logic I've used in a LONG time." I mutter under my breath while carrying the cases of prepackaged rations to the campsite.

I set them down on a patch of dry dirt and nearly bump into Mark as he runs over and immediately throws down his lawn chair he forced us to drag out of his aunts house in Minneapolis on the way up. I raise an eyebrow and shake my head as he falls onto it in fake exhaustion. I didn't have time to deal with his laziness. Walking back to the Jeep I grab the lighter fluid and flint and shove them into Dell's arms while saying, "You are going to start the fire." He pouts and opens his mouth to object but a quick glare from me makes him dash over to the fire pit in fear.

"You still got it Dylan, I have no-doubt that if you glared at a terrorist you'd get him to shit himself right before turning himself in." Terry said with absolute astonishment and amusement.

I shrug and say, "Hey, it's my one power I can use so I mine as well master it." Terry smiles and pushes her glasses back up her nose as she grabs the last of the tent supplies and walks off towards the far side of the camp.

I let my mind wander for a moment, remembering all the trouble the ride up here was. Two days of sleeping in the Cherokee and in road-side motels, one of which reminded me of a horror story I read once so I opted to sleep in the Jeep. Dell walked in on Mark and Terry, well, fornicating and then proceeded to puke for eight hours and pass out from dehydration.

I look over at him as he throws some brush into the fire pit and freaks out that some old ash was thrown in his face before coughing up a storm. I'm surprised he's still walking after that. He hadn't even known they were a couple until he walked in on them. The only reason he threw up was because he thought of Terry as a sister since he himself was also an only child and they've been friends since second grade.

_I can understand that, I felt really overprotective of Sarah when she started dating a few years ago. I smile as I remember a fight she and I had over why I was interfering with her love life so much. I told her that I thought of her as my little sister and wanted to protect her like an older sibling would. She just smiled and told me nicely that she knew who to call if she had a problem, and if I ever dragged her away from a make-out session ever again she was going to cut my balls off. I laughed and hug her tightly, she really was the cutest thing I ever knew._

I sigh as the lingering happiness of the memory bleeds away and I refocus on my task of finishing unloading the Jeep.

I look over at Mark as he sunbathes and then lock eyes with Dell and nod towards Mark for Dell to deal with it. Dell nods reluctantly and calls over to Mark, "Hey Mark what are you doing?" I pause in my activity and watch as Mark looks over to Dell, he grins wide and says, "Why coordinating building efforts Dell, what does it look like I'm doing?" Dell shakes his head, but I can see he's smiling.

I smile, now that his laziness has been confirmed out loud it should be only a second or two before Terry calls him on- "Mark?" Terry calls form the half-pitched tent a few meters away. Mark pretends to not here her. I smirk, wrong move dude. Terry pops her head out from the half-pitched tent to yell, "Mark get off your lazy ass and help me pitch the tent or your sleeping outside!"

To which Mark replies, "Get off my back Terry it was hard driving us all the way up here!" Mark was still laying comfortably in his lawn chair, eyes closed in relaxation.

Terry frowns and yells, "Oh you had it SO hard! You set the cruise and pushed the responsibility of steering onto Dell for half the ride while you napped! I'm shocked we didn't crash!"

He looks at me as I unloaded the last of our equipment and stop to catch my breath by sitting on the ground for a moment, "Hey! Why does Scorpio get to rest?!" Mark yells. I glare at him but he can't see it. I frown. He wasn't going to drag me into this.

Terry swears as the tent collapses with her inside, "I don't care if he was humping a tree and calling the song birds his parents get the hell over here!" Mark reluctantly sighs and quickly trots over to dive into the mess of a tent Terry had tried, and failed to pitch before his girlfriend killed him with an ice pick. Or made me glare at him again, whichever comes first.

I decide to meditate to calm myself and cross my legs while sitting on the ground. Dell stands from his position at the fire pit and walks over as I start to silently meditate, "You still need to do that huh?" I look up at him for a moment before closing my eyes and ignoring the world around me for a split second to think. "Hello?"

I crack open one eye to see his face not an inch away, "Please give me some space." I state calmly. He smiles and stands up before shaking his head at me and walking back over to the fire pit while whistling a tune I don't really recognize. I need a moment of peace.

I breathe in the cool October air and let the lingering memories of the long two-day ride slip away. I remember the date and internally shrug.

_Huh, it was my birthday yesterday._

I never celebrated my birthday with a lot of flare, a new video-game maybe but no flare. Hell I bought _Mass Effect 2_ the day OF my birthday in 2011 thinking it was this terrible foreign fps that I'd end up selling back a week later. Well, that week passed and I didn't sell it, I kept it. I played through it twenty times before Christmas then bought _Mass Effect 1_ and played that through January. Then I decided to play through both and did that until I found out that _Mass Effect 3_ was going to come out that March, I remember I was ecstatic the day I brought it home and played the Mars mission the first time.

I smile at the fond memories of anger and rage that my good friend Ashley getting injured during the end of it. I remember swearing out loud that the lying sack of shit Illusive Man was going to be horribly murdered before I put down that controller. Good thing it was a short week at school, otherwise I would have lost it. And after five consecutive days of continuous fighting I finished Mass Effect 3.

_Then I started getting really angry at the ending, I think it took me eight hours to finally say _screw it_ and except the ending for what it was, an ending._

I shiver as another cool October breeze rushed over me from the surrounding forest, breaking me from my thoughts. It was two years yesterday that I was introduced to Mass Effect, and now I will forever celebrate that date for what it is, the birth of my modern self.

I open my eyes after a while to see Dell still trying to start the fire and sigh. I guess I should go help him. I shout, "Dell what are you doing?" and stand up and walk over.

He lifts his head and raises and eyebrow up at me before saying, "I WAS trying to start the fire mister 'know it all'."

I cross my arms and ignore his frustration and say, "Looks like you aren't having much success." He sighs and nods. We look down at the slightly burnt green twigs he was trying to light and I face-palm. I hold up my arms in front of him and say, "OK, I'M going to go search for firewood and YOU are going to go get Terry and Mark to put their clothes back on and quit hogging the tent." His eyes widen and he nods after looking at said tent and noticing a lot of rustling and tussling going on.

_What would these people do without me?_

I walk to the edge of camp and check that I have my dagger with me. I cringe as the memories start to wash over me and I'm reminded of THAT night again. I shake my head clear of the dark memories and holster it before walking into the forest to forge for firewood.

* * *

Ten minutes later I had collected a good amount of dry-ish wood to burn and started making my way back. I knew the way, I had it memorized so I let my mind wander back to Mass Effect and all it's splendor. For some reason I could only concentrate on the Protheans, their beacons, their technology, the strangely eerie glow they made when activated.

_I absolutely love Protheans, I'm a fanatic for lack of a better word. I even learned a few of their words and written language one afternoon just to occupy myself._

I look up at the sky and notice it was getting surprisingly dark.

_Huh, I guess I was out for longer then I expected?_

I shrug and focus on the meaning of what I saw, "Morit-Kah" I recite in Prothean from memory, it was one of the few words I actually knew, It meant_ Dark-Sky_.

_ Their language rolls off the tongue so beautifully. I wish I knew more though, or at least I wish Bioware had created more of a language so I could learn more._

I look around at all the elder trees and smile at the strangely quiet part of the forest I was walking through. It just seems so peaceful in the late fall, not really any animals are out anymore, either they move on or hibernate.

I take a deep breath of the cool air and I stop for a moment to just listen to the silence. A twig snaps behind me and before I know it I'm turned around, dagger in my right hand and the firewood at my feet, staring into an encroaching darkness that seemed to just cover everything. I shiver as a sharp, freezing wind cuts across my face, forcing me to wince in slight pain. I open my mouth to ask 'who's there?', but I hear myself say, "Hess Teís?" I slap my hand over my mouth in shock_._ I just broke the fourth barrier between Prothean and English without even thinking about it.

_I don't even KNOW those words!_

A strange feeling washes over me as another freezing breeze hits me and I close my eyes and hiss at the sharp contact. Why is it so cold? It's not supposed to get this cold! I feel my feet carry me towards something and I open my eyes as the breeze subsides to find myself standing at the edge of a clearing.

It's completely silent around me, and nearly pitch-black. I look around with my peripheral vision and I catch a small stone... altar in the center of the small clearing. "What the hell?" I mutter to myself quietly as I approach the altar. I darted my eyes around, it felt like something or someone was watching me.

_I really don't like this..._

A light catches my eye and I turn quickly to stare at the stone altar in shocked awe. There were carvings of some strangely familiar language on it's surface. I walk up to it and feel the first indentation with my fingertips, they were strangely comforting for some reason. I traced the symbol, "Der." I pause and look around for who said it when I realized I'd said it. Ok, this is weird. I traced the symbol again, it's swooping lines seemed to create a tingling in my finger and I stare at it in a strange amount of curiosity and awe as it lights up even brighter as my trace ends. "Der." I hear myself say the word again. It seems like... My mind freezes. It was Prothean...

I swallow nervously and quickly trace the entire five symbol sentence carved into the stone. I knew it was a sentence since there was a curve after the last symbol, a little crescent moon that the Protheans used like a period. I let myself get caught up in the meanings of the symbols and I hear myself say, "Der Greé Hiss Loirét Réah." After I finish reading it I think about the words, but I couldn't understand them.

A voice whispers something I can barely hear and I look up quickly to see a hooded figure, cloaked in black, approaching.

_Oh my god..._

The hairs stand up on the back of my neck, I feel the air get really cold all of a sudden.

My attention is brought back to the symbols as they glow even brighter, running my hands over the indentations again I feel some force come over me and I could FEEL the meaning behind them. I open my mouth and say, "Death greets who calls the living." As soon as I whisper those words a strong gust of wind pushes against me from behind and I have to brace myself on the altar to avoid falling onto it. I look up again and freeze in shock to see the cloaked figure was just across from me on the other side of the altar, the person's face hidden behind the thin cloak. "Who are you?" I asked breathlessly in absolute fear.

_Fear, I haven't felt fear in-_

"AHHH!" I yell out in intense pain as something stabs at me from behind, it felt sharp, precise, like a thousand knives cutting into me, the pain forcing me to buckle and fall fully onto the altar. I clench my teeth and try desperately to block out the pain as it's intensity increases to the point at which I felt myself passing out. Then all of a sudden it stops and I could breath again. I pant in absolute shock at what I just felt. The unbearable pain was beyond anything I'd ever felt before, I felt like I was dying...

_What the hell is happening?!_

I try to steady myself my eyes widen as I'm lifted over the altar by an unknown force. I panic and try to grab onto anything around me but I found my body unresponsive. I couldn't move. My mind wanders and I remember something about a Prothean device that lifted people off the ground and weakly smile at the memory of _Mass Effect 1_'s opening mission.

_Well this is ironic..._

I internally laugh and ready myself for a massive influx of Prothean data or some warning, but it doesn't come. Nothing better to do then laugh at yourself when your at the mercy of some random other-worldly force. Is this what I get? Do I die in a forest over an altar I'm probably loosing it at? Is this the part where I find out it's all just an illusion? I close my eyes, the only thing left I could control besides my rapid thoughts.

I wince and groan in immense pain as the sharp stabbing feeling in my back returns.

_Oh, I'm going to pass out..._

I open my eyes as the sharp pain intensifies again and I scream in suffering. I feel a tear fall down my cheek and then I feel a heavy _POP_ in my chest. Everything stops, I can't feel anything at all. I look down on my own and I see my dagger, glowing green with some unknown energy, sticking out of my chest where my heart should be.

_I... what's happening...?_

My vision blurs and I felt cold, so cold. Like being frozen in a glacier. I looked beyond the glowing hilt of my dagger to see the cloaked figure approach and reach his hand out towards me. "What..." I managed to mutter before a bright light flares around me and my mind goes blank. My vision turns to deep black and my last thought was how warm it was, it was nearly scalding, purely tropical. It reminded me of Mexico...


	2. A Fixon Shark

A/N Another Chapter for you all, I hope it sets the right mood for the story. Anyways, Read, Review, and enjoy!

(Update)  
I'm really enjoying re-writing this story! It's a journey. :)

* * *

**An impenetrable emptiness... nothing, absolutely nothing left... then, a voice calls in the darkness, "Help!" It echoes through my mind and I can feel the desperation in it. A life desperate for someone, anyone to help her... her... a woman... that voice... "Dylan!" Her voice becomes distant and I'm running, running to prevent something I know I can't stop... she's gone... and it was my fault...  
**

* * *

My eyes fly open in complete and other-worldly fear from the nightmare and they're bombarded by the harsh light reflecting off of something and shut automatically. I groan as the feeling goes back to my limbs. What happened last night?

I raise my left hand to cover my eyes and I peek out to get a look at my surroundings. My eyes adjusted to the bright light within seconds and I look up in confusion, I was looking at a ceiling, through a ceiling made of white architectural struts that allowed light to pass through.

I blink in even more confusion as I tried to get my mind to start working. What the hell happened last night? I close my eyes and rub my head to try and alleviate some of the pain.

Ok, I was trying to... My eyes shoot open and I'm back in the forest, I can see the blood covered altar, the green symbols glowing with unknown power, the cloaked figure pulling it's hand from my floating body... I internally scream as I watch myself fall onto the altar with a loud thump and the cloaked figure turn to disappear into the blackness of night. Before the vision ended I looked up to the night sky, I saw nothing, not one star, not one cloud, the moon was gone...

I gasp and pant loudly in shock of the sudden vision and again shield my eyes from the harsh light. Oh god, that really happened didn't it? Where were the stars though?I just lay there for a moment to calm myself down, I knew what would happen if I didn't repress the memory, I'd begin a loop of the trauma like I did with, well, the night I earned my nickname.

I can think about that later I need to find out where I am. I move to stand and-

"Ow..." My forehead hits something definitely metal and I stifle a yelp in pain as I grab my head to try and hold back the daze from the sudden hit. What the hell was that? I lay there for a bit longer to just wait for my pain to subside.

Ok, so somehow I hallucinated that I died in a forest. How the hell did that happen? I don't hallucinate! I open my eyes and look directly above my head to see a curved metal bar, like an arm-rest. I blink and let my mind process it for a moment before grabbing hold of it with my right hand and using it as leverage to drag myself into a sitting position.

I rub my eyes and shake the last of my post-sleep daze and look around. I see... a lot of marble. A few fountains, well crafted too. I notice a few people walking around and scan the area for any clue as to what I was in.

I look at the benches, the free flowing streams, the trees cleverly planted around the fountains to create an ambient affect and contrast with the harsh sunlight peering through the slits in the curved roof and open balcony on my far right.

It all made the illusion of peace and safety almost too much for me to bare. I knew how harsh the world can be and this was a mask for it to hide behind. It is quite nice though.

I let a small smile grow on my lips and watch the water pour out of the statue built into the fountain my bench was facing. It looked like a person riding a shark of some kind, but the shark was massive, almost twenty times the size of the little marble person holding onto the back of the great beast only by it's sharp fin protruding from its back.

I cross my legs in front of me and look down when I don't feel dirt beneath my feet. More marble, so I'm in a high-class private park then or something? I let my eyes follow the curving natural pattern that the tiles made and find myself back at the statue atop of the fountain. Huh... Out of curiosity I watch the statue and try and find the meaning behind it like I do sometimes when I look at art.

Hmm... It's very unique in it's own way, first of all the shark is disproportionate to the rider and by the look of the person it is female, but the head is curved into a bumpy form I can't recognize. Also the entire thing looks to be carved out of the same piece as the floor. Very intricate, costly, but beautiful in it's own way. I always liked unique art, it seemed to be just strange enough for it to matter. I sigh in my moment of contentment.

I look around a little more and ignore the people walking by like usual, I just don't like people, so I do my best to just blend in.

"What do you think he is?" My ears perk up and I discreetly look to my left to see two women in long elegant dresses talking in hushed tones while trying and failing to subtly look over at me.

"I'm not sure, Definitely not from around here." One of them comment.

"I know! But what could he be?" The other woman asks her supposed friend.

"Shh! I think he's watching us!" the other whispers quietly, I could still hear them though. I was just watching out of the corner of my eye and they could notice I was watching? Huh, smart people.

I ignore the rest of the conversation and just lay back to relax for a moment while I figured out where I was.

Ok, a park, a private park like in a high-class restaurant or hotel. If I was at a hotel though then how did I get there? My brow creases in thought as I just try to think about something else that I could use to figure out where I was. Not finding any I decide to walk around for a bit to see if I can find out anything without asking someone.

I push off of the bench to stand and immediately cringe and stumble forwards as pain shoots up my left leg. I barely catch myself on the edge of the fountain and breath in and out slowly to calm myself. Oh, man did that hurt!

I clench my teeth and turn around to sit down and carefully lift up my left leg to see my jeans ripped and a bleeding 5 inch cut on my shin. "Oh, that is not good." I mutter as I inspect the bleeding gash in shock.

How did I not feel that?! My heart picks up and I close my eyes to avoid staring at the wound. I had basic medical training, CPR, how to properly dress this wound or that cut, but I NEVER thought I'd have to administer medical help on myself! I was WAY too careful to get hurt! I haven't broken a bone in my body since the day I was born and I'm proud of that!

I think I sat there for about two minutes staring at my wound bleed out and onto the marble floor before I heard, "Sir, I was going to ask you to- oh Goddess!"

I look up and blink as I see a young woman was walking towards me from behind the bench she stops and stares in shock and horror at my leg. Her dress was a bit more elegant then the others around the park for some reason.

I look at her as she rushes around the bench and up to me. Why is she blue? "Help! He's hurt! Stay still." She orders before kneeling down to inspect my wound for a moment.

I look at her and frown at the blue skin and weird textured head and skin. I feel as if I should know her from somewhere.

I struggle to not scream out in pain as she prods at my wound with her left hand before tapping something on that wrist and an orange glow covers her arm before glass-like panels start to form.

"Start up, please start up!" She mutters as the panels start to fizzle out before collapsing. I watch in absolute astonishment and shock at the strange technology she was trying to get to work.

What is that? I think my mind was having a meltdown from all the negative input from my leg because I ignore it and focus on not biting my tongue off from the pain.

God! how the hell can soldiers stand getting shot if this is how painful it is?! I cringe and just focus on blocking out the pain for a moment. Then all the pain just stops and I open my eyes to see the woman finishing spreading an orange goo onto my wound. I hiss in a sudden stinging sensation. "Sorry! Sorry, the medigel is going to sting for a bit." She says apologetically.

I waited until the the stinging stopped and took a deep breath to calm myself. I look down at her to thank her for the help but stop when it all starts to click. The architecture, the elegant dresses, the blue skin color, the strange shaped heads, the... wait... medigel? A glowing glass-like technology... My mind searched for the name. Omni-tool! My eyes widened. I stare down at the woman in front of me and I could see the distinction, she was an Asari. OH MY GOD! OH MY FLIPPIN' GOD!

I think about it all and I close my eyes in absolute shock and lower my head. I'm insane if I think I'm there. I can't be there. No no I refuse to think I'm there! I open my eyes carefully and she's still there. I cringe and shut my eyes. No. NO I AM NOT INSANE I AM NOT HERE! I take in a shaky breath and open my eyes sadly to look at the Asari in front of me. She was still there. She was obliviously typing something on her... omni-tool... Just roll with it Dylan, you can't know if your insane without talking to people. I cringe and open my mouth to ask something, anything, but my mouth dries up and I can't. I'm not... I feel a tear roll down my cheek and shake my head sadly. I'm insane. I'm insane... I have to be. I take another shaky breath and wipe away my tears before shaking my head and stealing myself. It's better to live in a fantasy then in reali-

"Oh Goddess!" I look up in shock and watch another Asari rush through a wall that turned out to be a futuristic door. I'm insane... She aproaches quickly and the Asari that helped me stands to look at the one approaching. The new Asari looks between us and asks the other Asari, "Liara, what has happened?"

...

...

What? I... I'm insane. I need a lot of help. I need to be in a psychiatric ward... I cautiously look over the first Asari and swallow as another wave of fear crept up my spine. I'm insane, I finally cracked... Liara...

The new Asari looks to me and asks, "Who is this?" I just sit there, waiting for it all to end. It's impossible, if I ignore it maybe it'll all go away and I'll wake up in the forest just fine and I'll go home and start taking my medicine again. She stares at me as I take another shaky breath and Liara joins her. I meet eyes with Liara. Her eyes were so pure, they reminded me of- NO I AM NOT GOING TO THINK ABOUT THAT!

I shake my head and look at the ground. I can't believe this... I look back up at her and notice something in her eyes, her azure-blue eyes, they seemed so young, so innocent. I sigh and look at the other Asari if I was going to get out of all of this I needed to know where, or when I was.

I steal my facial features and ask the older Asari, "I am sorry, but what year is it?" They jump back as if I just barked and stare at me in shock for a moment.

The older violet skinned Asari responds with, "It is 2171 child." I nod respectfully and smile politely at them. I am definitely going to need a stray jacket and a padded room, but I mine as well enjoy my insanity while I'm in it right?

I search my thoughts and find the one piece of information about 2171, from the Prothean notes on Liara's Shadow Broker terminal in _Mass Effect 3_. She wrote a Paper on the Prothean Extinction during her time at the University of Serrice.

I look up at her. I really hope she's already wrote that paper, if not then I'm going to have to break a lot of inter-dimensional law to make it right. I tilt my head at her and she looks at me in confusion, "You're Liara T'soni correct?" Her eyes widen in shock and she blinks at me for a moment.

She looks like she's analyzing me for that moment then she says, "Yes, why do you ask?" I smile and fake enthusiasm by straightening my posture and brushing off invisible dust off my legs before carefully standing and holding out my right hand, palm-side up in what I could understand from flash memory about Asarian greetings I looked up in my 'office' back home. I hope this is the correct greeting.

I ignore the stinging feeling in my left leg and say, "I read your paper on the Prothean's and found it fascinating." She looks at my hand then back at me in even more shock before smiling timidly and placing her slightly smaller hand on top of my own.

I notice the softness of her hands as she speaks, "Oh, thank you, I am glad you liked it. I am Liara T'soni." Her angelic voice was just like I remembered from my time playing _Mass Effect 1, 2, and 3._

"If I am not required I need to get back to my class, if anything else happens then call APC." The older Asari to my right says before quickly walking off. I don't even look at her. I was greeting Liara T'soni I didn't have time for anything else. I also suspected the APC was a police force of some kind so it didn't really matter right now.

Liara swallows and looks at me bravely, I could tell she was getting uncomfortable so I smile at her and say, "I am Scorpio, nice to make your acquaintance Liara." I resist the urge to scream as the feeling of total hell clashes with fear and anger at myself for saying that one word. I never liked my nickname, but it's useful right now. I fell like crying again as I force myself to push the memories of THAT night from my mind.

Liara, of course, is completely oblivious to my internal meltdown and smiles tentatively back before pullings her hand away from mine and saying, "It is nice to meet someone that appreciates my work." She stands rigid and fiddles with her dress while I absorb the conversation for the first time.

I'm talking to a very realistic hallucination of Liara T'soni.

I blink as I notice the change in the lighting and look around at the golden hue everything was covered in. I look turn towards the balcony and take a step... and wince in pain before dropping onto the bench I woke up on while gripping my injured leg.

Funny, this pain is definitely real, maybe I'm not... No! No that's impossible! "Oh, the first dose of medigel is wearing off, I'll apply another application." Liara states while tapping a black band around her wrist again and kneeling down to apply another dose.

As she does, I get my first sight of an omni-tool without the daze of denial clouding my vision. The clear orange glass formed around her thin arm in the curved network that seemed as natural to the situation as the air around us. The small holographic display was turning in a seemingly random pattern around her small blue fingers as the mini-fabricator applied another stream of the crystalline orange goo into my wounded leg. I quietly sigh contently as the pain ebbs away to a cool sensation.

Something catches my eye from beside me. I look and I find my dagger laying next to me on the bench, it was still coated with my blood.

"Huh, so that's where it ended up." I mutter under my breath while picking the dagger up and inspecting it for any alterations. I gasp in shock as it flares a bright Prothean green and light blue to my touch, the energy burns away the crusted blood to show the shining titanium surface of the blade. My mind freezes and I feel myself gap at it. It never did THAT before. Liara looks up and I quickly shut my mouth and inspect the dagger closely.

I can see Liara nervously sit beside me and stare at the glowing dagger in what I could see was wonder. "Is that... Prothean?!" She breaths in shock as I unintentionally ignore her to finish my inspection.

After a few seconds I notice that the green energy was coming from the symbols I carved into the sides of the blade. Huh, I guess that's one thing to remind me of the Altar. Everything is in order, every nick, every little reminder of different parts of my past placed into this one dagger. I carefully let my right hand wrap around the hilt and smile as thousands of little whispers of the past tell me the stories of my life. This blade is everything I am.

My mind remembers Liara and I say, "It's a dagger I built and customized back on... Earth." I cringe at the word. If I believe I'm on a different world then I'm allowing this hallucination to take root.

I shake my head clear and sigh before looking to my left and directly into Liara's eyes, they were brimming with curiosity. I smile and ask, "Do you want to inspect it Liara?" I hold the turn the dagger with practiced precision so I was holding it by the tip of the blade and rest the base of the blade on the palm of my left hand.

Her eyes jump to the dagger, then to me and she nods happily before gripping the hilt and waiting for me to let go before looking it over. It stops glowing entirely when my skin breaks contact with it. I look at her expression as she turns the dagger over in her hand, It was contemplative and spoke of decades of experience with artifacts. She's in her element here.

Her fingertips trace one of the symbols and when she finishes it the symbol lights up, and so does her eyes. She turns to me and asks with excitement, "This is amazing! How did you re-create authentic Prothean script?" I look at her and blink before looking at the dagger and trying to remember how I did it.

After a moment of thought I look into her strangely glimmering eyes and say, "I used a converted full-spectrum molecular laser to carve the symbols into the blade without cutting through it's one millimeter think surface." She frowns and starts inspecting the rest of the dagger as I let the memory wash over me...

* * *

"Mr. Greenburg?" I ask for the third time and finally he looks up from his terrible romance book hidden in a Calculus text book to stare at me in shock.

He quickly shuts the book(s) and says, "Yes Dylan?"

I place my unfinished dagger onto his desk and he stares at it in even more shock. "We had a deal, I help you, I get full access to your department's molecular laser."

He blinks up at me for a second while fixing his glasses and scratching his bald spot, then he looks around to see if anyone was around before handing me his set of keys for the main lab and nodding to me. I nod back and smirk devilishly while twirling my dagger around my right hand and back into its holster on my left hip.

"A pleasure doing business with you Mr. Greenburg." I say as I turn and resist the urge to sprint down the halls in elation that my dagger was finally going to be finished.

After all this time my dagger was going to be finally perfect...

* * *

I blink as my vision turned back to normal and I refocus on Liara still inspecting the very same dagger. It's been five years eight months... three days? Yeah three days since I finished that blade and started etching my life into it's edges, literally. Every nick, scratch, and addition was a piece of my life and I loved how it balanced the good and bad so perfectly. The sharp tip pointed me to a better future while the base of the hilt, the scorpion, represented my darker side. The side that would kill to save an innocents life, that... had already killed a man to achieve that goal. I close my eyes and breath in surprisingly fresh air to calm myself. It's been a long journey so far, and I'm only nineteen! If the rest of my life is even a fraction of what I've already experienced then I am going to need another four daggers.

"You are a Human?!" I look at Liara and focus on her shocked expression as she stands with my dagger. I watch her as she looks between the dagger and me for a moment before asking, "Scorpio?" I blink and force the memories away before nodding at the name. She looks at the dagger almost reverently as she carefully touched the tip of the curved blade in curiosity. She yelps in shock as the tip glows with heat and seems to burn her and she looses her grip.

I watch the dagger in my own shock as it spins out of her grasp, cuts a gash down her dress below the waist, and impales with a sharp *Clang* into the marble ground as if it was plastic. Ok, it's never done THAT before either. My eyes widen as it starts glowing again, this time with a bit of blue blood burning off of the blade like my own crusted blood did before.

"Oh... my mother is going to kill me!" I shake my head clear and lean out of the bench at the behest of my aching leg and pull the dagger out of the marble without any trouble and sheath it. Looking up I see Liara sitting on the edge of the fountain from before and inspecting her ripped dress sadly.

I groan as I stand up and walk over to take a look at it with her. I know a bit or two about sewing so maybe I could help out. I kneel down in front of her, careful not to use my left leg too much, and take the cut fabric in my hands. Hmm... it seems to be a cross-stitched inter-woven polyester fabric that was fused together with a second and third layer of colored fabrics to create the elegance of the aqua blue and greens that seemed to bend with the light.

I shake my head, if it was that intricate then it was one of a kind and impossible to repair cheaply, or at all in this case. I look up and see that Liara was watching me with a hopeful and nervous look in her eyes.

I sigh and say, "This is ruined as far as my skills go. I'm sorry." I carefully shift up and sit next to her.

I support myself for a second before putting a small amount of weight on my leg and shockingly there isn't any pain. Huh, modern medicine.

I feel something cover my right hand and look down to see Liara had placed her own over it, "It is not your fault, It was my curiosity that caused the accident." I look up from our hands and meet her eyes. I feel myself frown in contemplation and her eyes widen in what I would say was probably fright.

She pulls her hand away and says nervously, "I-I am sorry if I have offended you. I-I a-am not experienced with your species-" I raise my right hand to stop her.

It seems like she's always concerned about how others see her, it reminds me of myself when I was younger. I smile at her and say calmly, "You haven't offended me Liara, I was just contemplating something."

Her eyes fill with relief and her posture becomes less rigid, but not comfortable. I lightly sigh and watch her dart her eyes around, trying to calculate every outcome of this conversation within the few seconds before either of us speak again, it was so much like myself it made me reminisce on my child hood for a split second. The nervous conversations, the silent contemplations, my inability to speak to anyone without a formal introduction, it was all familiar.

"Oh, ok, might I ask what you were contemplating?" Liara's voice pulls me from my thoughts and I watch her carefully for anything out of place. Usually if this was a hallucination then something would be out of place, a small twitch of the face, incorrect dilatation of the eyes, etc, etc.

Seeing none I say, "I was wondering where I was actually, I was on a... transport carrier on my way to the... Citadel and... I fell asleep as the ship hit the Relay. I woke up here and I'm really confused." I hide my cringe at my terrible lie, but if I WAS inside an altered reality then I didn't want to be discovered, on the contrary, I enjoyed working from the shadows, waiting for my moment to strike. She tilts her head and watches me like I used to, just trying to make sense of the situation without asking.

I think about it for a moment. Huh, I guess I am like a scorpion in the way I fought in combat. Cautiously protecting myself and only striking when it's a deadly shot. I smile and think about my story for a moment, so why was I going to the Citadel? To join Shepard? It's WAY too early to actually even THINK about joining him/her... and I just realized I've been staring into Liara's eyes for about two minutes.

I blink and blush as I turn my head away form her, it was embarrassing getting caught in one of my thoughts. I've been slapped more then once from someone thinking I was staring at them when I was actually lost in thought.

I look back and notice now Liara was staring at me, lost in thought as well. Huh, well I guess that's interesting. "Liara?" I ask, she doesn't respond. I wave my hand in front of her face and she blinks.

Her eyes dilate and watch me in shock for a second before she blinks and looks away almost identically to how I did a second earlier. "I am sorry, I was lost in thought, not staring."

I smile at her and place a hand on her shoulder, her head snaps around to watch me. I knew that would get her attention, I hate people touching me without good reason. "Liara, you have nothing to be sorry about, I was exactly the same way a few years ago." Before I committed murder and ruined my life.

Her eyes widen and she seems to relax a bit. I pull my hand away from her shoulder carefully and she smiles at me in a moment of contentment. "You are kind Scorpio." Something catches her eye and she looks past me and gasps.

I quickly go to grab my dagger on impulse and whip my head around to be bombarded by the most beautiful sunset I'd ever seen in my entire life. My god...

"Holy Goddess..." I hear Liara say breathlessly as she walks past me to lean forwards over the balcony. I stand to join her and ignore my aching leg in favor of watching the day end.

My palms rested against the metallic guard rail as my eyes took in the bright flowing oranges, reds, and purples that all seemed to melt into the surrounding swooping landscape as if everything mirrored the simple beauty of nature.

I smile contently as my eyes watch sparkling lights of thousands of vehicles moving like the life-blood of the city to and fro fro their destinations below me. I average I'm about twenty floors above ground and shiver slightly at the implications. I hated heights.

My eyes drift back to the sky and I watch the burning orb as it slowly descended beyond the horizon, the orb was a cooling yellow that dictated that it was the local star in this system, it was of a different hue then the one back home, seemingly closer too. Maybe we're close to the equator? Seems logical.

I let my mind wander as I follow the natural flowing rivers and architecture that made the entire landscape look like it was carved by the rivers that glided though their pointed sky scrapers. it all reminded me of something... something terrible that was also beautiful...

My vision overlaid images of the Reapers into the background, obscuring the bright star, causing everything to glare a burning red...

...

Oh crap, I'm on Thessia! I swallow involuntarily, I knew it was going to be a while until the reapers actually came, if any of this was even real, but I wasn't even a little bit prepared to fight them!

My eyes widen at the thought of being stranded on the Asari Homeworld during the invasion and I have to shake my head to stop the thought from continuing.

"It's so beautiful..." I hear Liara say. I look to my right and watch the radiant light reflect and highlight Liara's face and brighten the color of her skin as the harsh light tinted her a strangely red magenta. She looks so beautiful that she could be mistaken for the Goddess herself at this moment.

I absentmindedly say, "Yeah, absolutely beautiful." As I watch her continue to smile into the sunset.

She looks at me and smiles timidly as she seems to realize I was staring. She blushes and focuses on the sunset, "Uh, thank you." She says with slight embarrassment. I blink and quickly look back to the horizon to try and hide my blush. I really hope I'm not insane, because if this is just some huge illusion and I wake up in the forest in a few days then I am going to be pretty pissed off.

I calm myself and listen to the sounds of engines roaring though the open air and the bustling of the city below me. Ok, maybe this isn't an illusion. Maybe I'm actually here.

I think for a moment and check my pockets to find they did indeed still hold my IPhone and wallet.

Ok, so where have I seen this before?

I search my thoughts and find a lot of fan-fiction SI's had a similar set up. Nearly all of them never dropped the main character TWELVE YEARS before Eden Prime, but it fit the category.

I scratch my head and sigh in exasperation. Really? I'm really in one of THOSE? Oh great...

The surrounding temperature drops and I refocus on my surroundings to find the sun was completely set and some artificial lights now illuminated the area in a ghostly blue haze. "Well, it has been nice meeting you Scorpio, I hope the rest of your time in Armali fares better."

I turn towards Liara's voice and in a moment of personal panic I jump towards her and grab her arm.

"Wait!" I nearly shout.

She freezes and turns around to look at me in frightened shock.

I let her arm go and ask, "I was wondering, um, if you ever wanted to go out for a drink or something?"

It was a long shot, but I had to try, she's my favorite character after all!

She watches me for a moment, seemingly analyzing the situation like I usually do before agreeing to do, well, anything really. This is nerve racking! I tap my fingers against my thigh to my internal clock and count the seconds.

After about the third minute Liara smiles and says, "I would love to Scorpio." She calls up her omni-tool and goes through the menus.

I watch in awe at a better look at a possibly real life omni-tool, the windows opened and closed rapidly as she tapped and slid through the displays that were written in a language I couldn't understand. It's probably Asarian. I blink.

Wait, if it's Asarian and I can't understand it then how can I understand what they are saying? I remember the translators from a lot of the fan-fiction I've read and touch the interior of my ears discreetly to find a metallic-plastic casing lining the interior.

Ok, yeah, how the hell did I get translators? Furthermore, how the hell did I even GET here?! I was in a forest! Did I die or something? Was I really thrown into a parallel dimension or something? I sigh and close my eyes to count my heart beats while holding my breath, it was a trick I learned to keep myself from freaking out.

"Um, do you have an omni-tool?" I quickly open my eyes to see Liara looking at me questioningly with one of her black tattooed eyebrows raised.

On impulse I shake my head while I thought up an excuse, finding none I reach into my pocket and pull out my IPhone and say, "I lost it and have been consequently using my great-grandfather's IPhone instead." I power it on and sigh as I remembered how long it was to actually get to the lock screen.

"Uhh... Ok. This is my number." She holds up her omni-tool and taps something on her display before the screen flips around.

I quickly take a picture of the screen and nod before saying. "I hope I can call you soon. It's been a weird awakening." She smiles at me timidly and she turns to walk away. I watch her shadowed form disappear through an exit door and sigh at the crazy day I was having.

I look down at the picture on my IPhone and notice something in the corner, It was Liara's smile, and it was so beautiful, so calm, so innocent. I almost hate it that she'll loose that after Shepard dies. I pause.

...

...

I really believe I'm here now aren't I? I'm inside the _Mass Effect Universe_. I shake my head in a sort of elated shock before going over my options. Ok, I have no-where to sleep, no food, no way to get back of course, no money, a wallet with...

I open up the tri-fold leather wallet and count what I had. Twenty seven dollars and my _Gamestop Power-up Pro Rewards_ card, and I had my IPhone.

...

Yeah I'm screwed.

I sigh and think about all the options I COULD take.

...

Wow, not many, great.

After careful consideration I decide it was a good idea to take one from the fan-fiction archives and just sell all my old crap and IPhone for some quick credits until I got a job. Ok, so where is rapid transit. I look around and after a bit of difficulty I find it next to the balcony, it was just a small podium with a holographic display.

I press a button.

...

...

Why isn't this working? I press it again and nothing happens. Then I remembered why and facepalm. Oh great! I need cybernetic implants or a HAPTIC glove to run this! I run my hand over my face in annoyance and wonder what sleeping on a park bench felt like.

"Are you having trouble sir?" I jump in surprise and spin around to find an Asari in an orange gown staring at me.

I stare back at her for a moment. How did she sneak up on me so easily?

I shake my head and say, "Uhh, yeah, I forgot that all the displays were holographic and someone stole my omni-tool so..." I rub the back of my next to indicate I was clueless as to what I could do.

She smiles and says, "So you're stranded with no way to control any of the technology around here, I got it honey, step aside."

I blink in shock as she brushes me to the side and types up the display on her omni-tool.

"Now where did you wish to go?" She asks as the futuristic and familiar skycar floated down out of no-where and landed next to me before opening.

I stare at it for a moment before turning back to her and saying, "The markets, I was going to buy a new omni-tool by pawning off some of the items I have on me."

She nods and types some more. This is really nice of her to be doing this for a complete stranger.

I step into the back seat of the skycar and she nods and waves as it abruptly closes, cutting my thank you off. A bit rude, but I thi-

"OH MY GOD!" I yelp in shock as my fingers dig into my seat in fright.

The skycar upon taking off sped up immediately to beyond safe speeds. I shook in fright as my mind tried to process the other buildings and skycars as they flew by as blurs of color and light.

"Oh my god I am going to die!" I yelled just before the skycar took a sharp right to avoid a head-on collision.

I feel my adrenaline spiking as I clench the edge of my seat in total and utter fear, then as quickly as it began, it ended.

The skycar parked and opened with a *DING* and I could faintly recall a female voice saying, "You have arrived, have a nice day!" As I collapsed onto all fours on the sidewalk next to the rapid transit podium.

...

Never again...

...

...

I swallow as my adrenaline wears off and hold my breath for a moment to avoid hyperventilating in my shock.

"Whoever designed those things need to be dragged out into the street and shot! How the hell do people deal with that on a daily basis!" I yelled without a care as I shakily stood up using the podium for support.

I need a break.

I take deep breaths and ignore the stares from the locals for a moment as I try and comprehend what just happened.

Never again...

I fall back against the podium and slide down to the grown in exhaustion and just breath deeply, just trying to calm down as the aliens around me walked by without a back-ward glance.

I sit there for a minute, just wondering if I could have two heart attacks in one day and live to tell about it.

I close my eyes and just relax for a moment to catch my racing thoughts.

"If this is a precursor to what my time here is going to be like I mine as well get it over with early and avoid dying in a fiery skycar crash." I mutter while standing slowly and glaring at the metal death trap and kicking it twice before walking down the street, just venting my anger at the irresponsible rapid transit systems quietly.


	3. Without Cause

A/N I had some free time so I got to revise another chapter! :)

Please Read, Review, and Enjoy!

* * *

Ok, so apparently I'm not insane and I'm just inside of the Mass Effect Universe! Great! Seriously. Of all the things that could have happened when I went on a camping trip with my four best friends I get killed, maybe, apparently, and thrown into this Reaper infested universe!

Ok, calm down, calm down.

I take a deep breath and look around from my position leaning against the side of a building and notice a lot more diversity between the aliens out here then earlier. Huh, the night shift must have just gotten off of work.

After cooling off from my near-death experience with the ARTS (Armali Rapid Transit System), I ended up getting lost in the crowds and having to resort to asking for directions. I asked an Asari first, she tried to hit on me so I politely shot her down and asked a Salarian. Worst idea I have ever had in a while. I nearly screamed when the thin, big-eyed creature turned to stare at me with those absolutely empty black spheres.

I involuntarily shiver just from remembering how weird they were.

I just turned around after that and asked the first Turian I'd ever met if he had directions to the nearest tech shop.

He screamed that I was a thieving bastard and threatened to, well, my translator couldn't translate the exact words because he was using A LOT of Turian swear words, but it roughly translated to, 'Get out of my claws you bat-worm before I yelp my ceremonial burial dagger into your insect's rectum.'

...

Yeah, I nearly burst out laughing when I heard that! I ran when he started growling and now I'm just hiding out in an alleyway so I can find my bearings.

Well that went well.

I look out into the street again and notice the crowds were starting to thin out.

I'll have to watch myself around Turians. I don't want a thirteen centimeter ceremonial item of their people shoved up my arse for asking where I could find a good tech shop.

I take a deep breath of the damp air and look more closely at the buildings to try and decipher what they meant.

I'm wasting a lot of time.

Not seeing anything familiar I sigh and walk as nonchalantly as I could out of the alley and into the crowd. I was an expert at blending in with a crowd of Humans but with other species it was almost impossible since I couldn't see ANY other Humans around anywhere.

I let my mind pick up on the small differences of the crowd and I catch a Volus talking to a Turian as a Salarian discreetly sat on a nearby bench and hacked into the Turian's accounts. I knew that because his omni-tool lit up for a split second every time the Salarian tapped anything on his omni-tool.

I still got it.

I smile and focus on the footsteps around me, the rough steps of people late for something, the soft patter of other more discreet people with time, the confident steps of the more dangerous, paranoid, or wealthy as they walked clear of the crowds in practiced precaution. I knew how to ID them all, even in different species, and I loved that. This is going to be pretty awesome if I can pull it all off.

I start walking through the crowd, using my mind's eye to check the amount of valuables everyone had on them like a friend from middle-school taught me.

I counted a few tourists with cautious pockets, a few armed patrons, and a lot of credit-filled pockets.

I sigh as I finish my round and sit down on a bench outside some kind of restaurant. I didn't want any of it but I knew how to do it and get away with it. I internally smirk as my mind drifted to the first job I did for Victoria, my school's guild master...

* * *

I look around from my position by the bathroom doors and blink my left eye over to a completely average girl sitting on a bench, seemingly lost in her phone, to show I was ready.

I catch a laser pointer flash as my signal and push off the wall. It had been a rough three weeks of training. Victoria knew I had potential when she noticed how quiet my foot steps were and how easily I fit into a crowd. She was a great teacher, a bit strict, but on the streets it was life or death, or at least that was what she told me of the streets. I just wanted a hobby outside of gaming and band.

I walk into the Sears outlet store and smiled at the attendant by the door. It was an elderly man, a little over weight, terrible eyes, hatted his job, and was willing to look the other way for a good Andrew ($20 bill). He winked back to me as I held out my hand and shook his discreetly while giving him his charge.

I walked around the clothing department, looking for what I could before picking up a few shirts and a hooded sweat shirt before walking over to the cashiers. "You find everything alright?" The young, distracted girl asked while deftly typing up the transaction.

I nodded and let my peripheral vision pick up Victoria walking in from the parking lot. "Yeah, I'm going to check out the electronics but I didn't have the funds for a new video camera." I say just loud enough for Victoria to hear from just beyond the woman's clothing. It was our code for 'The guard's cleared.' If I started talking to the cashier the coast was clear.

The girl glared at me and says, "I am not sleeping with you." I hold myself still and focus of keeping myself from stuttering.

I raise an eyebrow in question and say, "I'm fourteen. It's illegal. Plus your too pretty for someone as simple as me to even have a chance." I fake immense sadness and turn to walk away.

I get four steps away before I hear her swear and say, "No wait, I'm sorry. I just broke up with my boyfriend and am a bit angry."

I turn and nod to her compassionately. "That's understandable." I say while walking back up to the counter.

"I mean, am I not hot enough? Was he intimidated by my intelligence?" I listen, it was a good trait to have.

I shake my head, "You're perfect in your own way..." I look at her name-tag. "...Bethany."

She looks at me sadly and smiles for a second. "This is my friend's uniform, I'm not even employed here." I smile in shocked revelation. That sneaky vixen! She's really the master!

Victoria walks up to stand next to me and wraps an arm around my shoulders, "You are going to be a pro in no-time. Alexis, have the _Quota_ brought out back." I look at Alexis and she smirks before hitting the code on the register to close the shop and she takes nine twenties from the register as Victoria and I get to work...

Ten minutes later the guard was knocked out, the camera's wiped, and we were on the way back to our class's field-trip. Victoria looks at me from behind her golden locks and librarian glasses, her eyes were filled with pride, "Looks like the day went according to plan D."

I look up at her and smile from behind my black and gray hooded sweater I _'bought'_, "You are the master V."

We walk along the side of the building, discreetly avoiding the cameras and weave back into the group next to the school buses, trying not to smirk like idiots at our clean getaway. "Ok, everyone onto the bus. It's a long four hour ride back and we're already running late!" The teacher involved with the field-trip, Ms. Hanson, said before practically shoving us onto the bus and flooring it.

I was one of the last onto the bus. I walked to the back and smiled in elation that Victoria saved me a seat. I sat down next to her and noticed she was looking out the widow in mourning. "V what's wrong?" She looks at me. Actually through me.

I sigh and pat my left hand on her shoulder, "It's alright V. A will get it done." She looks into my brown eyes with her own deep green and smiles.

She places a hand on my left shoulder and smiles at me strangely, "I always wondered how you could be so caring and yet so blind. Alexis was the fall girl. She's going to be arrested, but not for long since she only knew it was happening, not who was doing it. She won't talk. She never talks." I nod in unsettling contentment.

Little would I know that she WOULD talk and I'd have to rat out the first true friend I'd ever made to save myself...

* * *

My sight returns to normal. I sigh as the guilt from my decision wrapped around my heart.

I betrayed the only friend i had back then, I betrayed the first friend I EVER had to save myself. Sure I was only fourteen at the time, but that is not an excuse.

I shake my head sadly and push the memory back into the dark corner of my mind it crawled out of.

I was only fourteen, but that is not an excuse! Damn my high moral code and extremely empathetic tendencies!

The school's small twenty person underground thought I was the new guild master and put me in charge. I wasn't ready for the responsibility and soon the entire thing crashed down and two separate groups formed, the jocks who used to run the muscle, and the nerds who worked in the plotting department.

The school was never the same again.

I look over the dwindling crowd and finally spot a directory board across the street. I stand and jog over to run my fingertips over the map to find my location.

You'd think this thing would have a 'You Are Here' star, or dot, but nope nothing.

I find the markets and by comparing the stores around me to the map I found out I was near the edge of the district, near the tech shops.

Huh, if I had kept walking for another ten minutes I'd been right on top of them.

I map out the area mentally and double check my estimation of where the tech shops were before heading down a street who's name I couldn't pronounce even if I tried.

* * *

Ten minutes later I was standing in front of an older shop that looked like it was on the verge of bankruptcy. I walk up to the dark little shop and look up at the neon sign. It read, _'Circuits and More'_ with the _'r'_ on _'More'_ blinking on and off randomly.

Seriously? Electrical problems in the future? This place must be really rundown.

I walk up to the old-fashioned push-door and heard a strangely high-pitched beep as I entered. I look up at a banner that stated that they bought and sold old tech and smile at my luck.

It might be circumstantial but it feels a bit homey in here.

I nod at the banner and decide to browse for a bit before actually talking to someone about my IPhone. I walk down an isle and pick up a disk that reminded me of a stripped down core processor, I look at the tag.

A tech grenade? Sheesh am I out of touch with this stuff.

I put the disk back on the shelf and look around at the rest of the store. The place was actually pretty well stocked. Bins of older models of collectible star-ships were in the back with isles that lead people towards the expensive 5000 credit omni-tools and electrical boards that were apparently on sale. Out of habit I look around for security and surprisingly I see nothing, not one camera, not one sensor.

Huh, I guess there isn't much crime in such a run-down shitty place.

It was a nice shop, if a bit dated, even by my standards. Some strangely enjoyable song was playing from the back rooms and spilling out into the main area. I hum along to the Asarian sounding pop-rock song and looked over the strange alien tech they had in another bin near the checkout.

I have no idea what most of these things are, but they're priced WAY too low to not be defective, even I could see that.

"Hello sir, what might I help you with today?" The perky violet-skinned Asari behind the counter smiles at me and tilts her head to look at the small fan-driver-thing I was taking a closer look at.

I drop the small, well, device back into the bin and walk up to the counter, "I was actually wondering if you bought older tech."

Her smile grew wider and she nods excitedly, "Oh yes! We buy anything and everything, if it's broken we can fix it!" I scoff internally.

I highly doubt that. I don't see the mark of a Quarian's work anywhere. As far as my extremely limited knowledge goes this place sells crap tech for regular price and screws off anyone they can.

I shift my weight onto my right leg to lessen some lingering pain from my injury and pull out my IPhone, "I was going to sell this, it was my great-grandfather's"

I hand it to her and she turns it over in her hands a few times before finding the ON button and hitting it. The screen lit up and so did her eyes, "Sir, this is- this is an amazing find! It's rare to find working human technology from the early twenty-first century. It is a beautiful specimen as well, an IPhone 4S?"

My lips curl into a smirk, "Yep, my great-grandfather left it to me in his will, it was sealed in a vacuum for over a hundred and fifty years to preserve it, I unsealed it before coming to Thessia to find a better market for this type of old tech. You know how it is, everything older than ten years is worthless on Earth. I couldn't find any dealers willing to buy and the Collectors were all off-world."

I'm horrible, I just lied again! I know I have to but it doesn't make me feel any better about it. I need to lie to avoid being called insane and/or killed for being strange and undetectable.

She buys my story and starts to analyzing the phone with her Omni-tool, "This'll take a few minutes to an hour kid, I'll have to authenticate it to, that costs 100 credits but I can already tell this thing is the real-deal to I'll bite the bullet and just deduct it from the sales total."

Ok, I don't speak business, but that sounded at least acceptable.

I nod reluctantly and start wandering around a bit. "Right, flag me down when you finish." I said while walking towards the 5000 credit omni-tools.

I look over the displays and frown when the only thing I could find that I recognized was a beat-up _Savant 1_.

Well, it is 2171 so I'd be surprised if they had more of what I remember from _Mass Effect 1_.

I sigh as I set the scratched omni-tool back onto it's display.

Nothing I know about this stuff is going to help me for over a decade.

My eye catches a metallic bracelet in the 1000 credit bin nearby and pull it out. I brush my fingertips over the shining titanium plates and I find the name engraved on the side.

The _Terra 7_, huh...

I slipped it on my left wrist and tapped the circular base on the band that made it look like a watch. To my surprise a purple panel popped up and had start-up options in all the different languages available. I look at the list and finding English I try to tap it and groan in annoyance at my lack of the glove or implants.

God, this is going to get annoying. Ok, first priority I need to get an omni-tool and a set of Haptic gloves.

I look around discreetly and notice the Asari had gone into the back. I smile internally and deactivate the _Terra 7_ and carefully pretend that I put it back into the bin when I actually placed a piece of metal I found while walking here from the director board in its place.

Ok, I have a moral code, but in this case I know this store is ripping people off left and right so it's excusable.

I browse for Haptic gloves and push down the slight guilt my theft of the omni-tool had on me.

I need it more then this store does. I know how they work, buy crap tech for a fraction of it's actual cost, fix it up with no cost to the store and sell it for double the original buying price with a _sale_ label slapped on it. It's capitalism at its finest.

I find a bunch of gloves on a rack off to the side and a chart next to it that helpfully told me which were compatible with what type of hardware. I look them over and after some digging I find a pair of universal gloves for 8000 credits.

Holy shit! I am not paying THAT much for gloves!

A high-pitched *DING* sounded and I look up and over to the door while slipping on the gloves and pulling my coat's sleeves over my hands to hide them. I focus on the red-skinned Salarian that just walked in and nod to him as he walks up to the bin of _'500 credits or less'_ next to me.

Don't freak out, don't freak out!

I look out of the corner of my eye at him as he rubs his lower lip in contemplation while looking over a circuit in his left hand.

I am not going to freak out.

I pull back my sleeves enough to work the gloves and omni-tool and activate it. The Terra 7 bleeps quietly as it identifies my gloves and I swipe through the display to quickly find the English option. Tapping it the purple panel forms into a small omni-tool with three separate panels and no circular fabricator around my left hand.

"Odd, old model, crude yet very affective at many different applications." The Salarian said.

I blink and look up from the purple panels to look at the Salarian.

He stares at the omni-tool and nods in what I would assume approval. "Good model for beginners."

I smile shyly and nod before tapping the display and watching as it collapses into a holographic dial thing.

Huh, what's this?

Using the gloves I turn the dial and almost gasp in shock as the panels shifted from a deep purple to a magenta.

Oh this is too cool! I'm going to have a lot of fun with this thing.

* * *

"...that's why the interior of the fuselage combusted into an inferno, burning half of my kin inside as I saved myself by escaping via the last escape pod." I swallow as the Salarian smiles deviously and looks off into space before throwing his arms up in the air and shouting, "BOOM! All the walls shaking, the whispers ended but sure it was ok, I was ok." I watch him in shock as he leans towards me to whisper, "It was the Marker."

My eyes widen and I go to speak but nothing comes out.

He smiles, "You know don't you? It was black, it smelled of rotting death but that was ok. It was ALL ok."

I could feel my spine freeze up in fear. I had been listening to this seemingly normal Salarian for the last hour after he started the conversation over my omni-tool and he was getting even more unstable my the second.

I open my mouth and he covers it with his hand, "SHHHHH! It is a secret! A SECRET!" He whispers insanely. He backs away from me slowly and keeps backing away until he's up against the wall.

I start to panic as he reaches into his pocket with a crazy look on his face.

"THIS!"

He whips a Sharpe Black Marker out of his pocket and quickly pulls the cap off to take a sharp inhale. "Oh yes... oh yes, oh yes, OH YES!" He shivers and I stare at him in confused shock and exasperation as he continues to sniff the arts and crafts marker.

...

...

...

I open my mouth to speak but he jumps up and screams, "THE MARKERS WILL RISE!" Before dashing into the exit door, throwing it open, and running out of the store giggling insanely.

...

...

...

"Ok..." I start to try and make a sentence, but nothing could explain what the HELL just happened.

...

I turn back to the counter and look at the stoic features of the cashier. I open my mouth to ask what the hell just happened, but she holds up her hand to say, "Save it! That maniac comes in here every other month so just save it." I nod and try to forget the crazy crazy encounter I just had.

This is why I hate meeting new people!

"Ok, according to the Apple Authentication Office this phone is worth..." The Asari cashier/store-owner said as she taps a few more buttons on her omni-tool. I waited patiently for an answer.

Anything to distract me from that insane Salarian. I knew that guy had a screw loose!

"And it looks like my omni-tool just died on me, great." I look up to see the Asari take her omni-tool and drop it in the bin next to the checkout.

Oh, well, I guess that's good business practice.

The bin was labeled, _5 credit clearance! _I look around the shop and start thinking about what it reminds me of.

You know, this place does remind me of _BestBuy_ at Spring clearance.

The Asari pulls out another from her pocket and starts it up, she types something on it then links it to the terminal that was off to the side. "Ok, I got my back-up working, Your IPhone is worth 52,000 credits according to the AAO."

*COUGH* *COUGH* "What?!" I shout before staring at her in absolute disbelief.

Holy god!

I lower my head and calculate how much that actually is.

Ok, I can live for about a month in bad conditions, a week in livable conditions, a year in poverty, or a day in luxury. I'll see where I can find a job then decide.

She just nods and rung up the item, "The AAO buys their old technology for a huge price, I'm surprised you weren't given an offer back on Earth."

I just gawk at the 52,000 credits for a moment longer before shaking off my shock and activate my omni-tool.

...

...

I'm waiting you damn machi- The display suddenly flashes up and a bunch of code runs down the screen before it flashes off.

"Damn it!" I shout. I just had this thing working to! Gah!

"Sir? Is your omni-tool not working?" I look up at the Cashier and just catch the end of a smile as she looks at me in fake concern.

I watch her for a moment then saying forcefully, "I want a Savant 1 omni-tool, NEW, not like the rest of this crap!" I glare at her as she smiles and point a finger in her face before saying, "You're already getting a huge kick-back for recovering this IPhone so you get to give me the best, or so help me..." She shrinks back and winces with her eyes shut.

Am I really that good at scaring people into submission?

"Alright! Alright, just don't hurt me!" She squeaked in fear from behind the counter.

I look over it and frown at her as she cowers on the floor. "I don't even have anything I could harm you with, I'm just a bit angry because I've been on-world for less then one day and everything has gone to hell since then."

I walk around the counter and carefully crouch down next to her, "You are a scam artist, I understand that, I on the other hand have seen A LOT of people get hurt during a scam. I won't report you if you help me get what I need." I held out my hand to her as I stand and she stares at it in shock.

I'd expect a lot of muggings to go on in these small stores.

After a moment of staring at my hand she takes it and stands. "I... thank you for not hurting me." She smiles and walks into the back-room.

I watch her with sad eyes before letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding and use the counter as support as I groan in pain. My leg was starting to re-gain feeling and it didn't feel good.

I shake my head and take a deep breath to calm myself, I needed to get through the day.

I decide to keep the _Terra 7_ for later and sigh as I waited for the store-owner to come back.

This is a really insane place to be right now. I mean I'm in the _Mass Effect Universe_!

I smile and just let myself remember all the fun I had playing the series. That Mako sucked though.

"Here you go, a new Savant 1 omni-tool with standard combat programs such as Overload, Incinerate, and Omni-Blade. I'll just deduct the selling price from your total amount of credits and... there." She put the clearly new and unused omni-tool on the counter and I turn to look at the transaction screen.

Wow, ok I did not know that a _Savant 1_ omni-tool sold for 12000 credits. Holy Goddess...

...

Ok, I've got to figure out why I'm adapting so quickly.

I smile at the clerk and slip the pristine omni-tool onto my left wrist and let the band tighten slightly around my wrist before tapping the small hidden bump on the edge of the band. The start-up panel popped up and I selected English. It immediately brought me to the next part of the start-up.

Woah, the Terra 7 barely even compares to this thing! It's so fast!

I tap through the display and smile at the lack of a delay like there was on the other one.

This is going to be awesome.

After I finished going through the start-up menus the clerk helped me set up an Extranet Offline Financial Account, or EOFA. I could have sworn she was speaking a different language when she asked if I had an EOFA. Well, she WAS speaking a different language, but well it confused me so, yeah.

I thank her absentmindedly as I walk through the push door and back out into the street. I look around and decide to tinker with my new _Savant 1 _while walking down the street towards a bench I could vaguely make out through the surprisingly large crowd.

I'm probably annoying everyone around me, walking down the street with my nose in my omni-tool, but it's just too cool! It was like buying a newer, faster computer and playing your favorite game on it without having to install conversion software!

Ok, lets see if I can access some type of map. I tapped a_ LOCATIONS_ tab on the main menu and it brought up an interactive 3D map of my location with a search bar in the corner.

Huh, well that's convenient. Dell and Mark would have loved this.

I stop walking and close my eyes.

Oh man, I'm never going to see them again am I?

I can feel tears come to my eyes as my mind drifts to my parents.

Did they know where I was? Do Terry and the others? Did they find my body in that clearing? Am I really dead and this is some strange afterlife?

I sniffle and open my eyes before wiping my tears away with my sleeve, it wasn't the time to mourn the past yet.

I shake my sadness away and crease my brow in determination.

You have got to focus Scorpio!

I cringe internally at the name.

I'm going to hate being called that, but maybe I can change the Legend and rewrite what people knew Scorpio did, I could make Scorpio mean something! I found the light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. I need to help this cycle end.

The last of my brief sadness pushed from my mind I turn my attention back to my omni-tool and look up a few of the businesses I've passed during my walk. I find a weapons and armor shop named _The Chained Krogan_ that was down the block and had good reviews. I pin it on my map as my destination. A small holographic arrow pops up on my omni-tool. I wave it around and it stays pointing towards the shop no-matter where I put it.

Ok, Dell seriously needs to get one of these.

Mexico...

I mean who mistakes a huge metal fence for a rock formation?! Granted he had only slept an hour the night before, but still!

* * *

After a few minutes of terrorizing the populous with my novice omni-tool skills I decide to take a rest and found a bench nearby. I sit down and start looking up the stats for my omni-tool. That's when it crashes after glowing bright blue and displaying a lot of white codes. I lower my head in annoyance and look back up to find it turned itself off.

God! I pay twelve thousand credits for this?!

I glare at the band on my wrist and it miraculously starts back up.

"Welcome to the _Savant 1_ operating system start up!" A synthesized voice spoke from the tool.

I could feel my eye twitch as I filled out the start-up menus, AGAIN. hopefully I'll have enough time to find the specs page.

Opening the correct page I read the stats and gasp in shock.

80 Terabyte capacity! Holy shit! My _OPTIPLEX_ back home could only hold one-two thousandth of that!'

I read down the page and am even more amazed at the running speed of 100GB/sec.

Holy crud! My omni-tool could run the entire Internet and still have space for the entire archive at the Library of Congress! The wonders of modern technology! Or advanced technology. Or inter-dimensional technology...

I shake my head and just smile in a tech induced elation as I looked through the pages and marveled at the things my omni-tool could do.

"Hi, umm... is this seat taken?" I look up from my tool and blink as I see a Quarian woman, cloaked in a deep blue environmental suit, and nervously shifting side to side.

First Quarian I've ever met...

"Not at all, please, sit." I said while smiling at her friendly. She looks at me in surprise and hesitates before sitting. She proceeds to then ignore me and activate her omni-tool. Oh, well I guess that's understandable, a lot if not all Quarian's are quite wary of other people outside of the Flotilla.

I watch her out of the corner of my eye as I lookup what a personal VI like Siri would cost to install.

She was young, maybe a few years older then me by her height and how tattered her suit looks. And by the lack of a personalized hood or decorative veil she's either an exile or on her Pilgrimage. Probably never met a Human before in her life.

I decide to just make my VI a learning process and download a few manuals on their construction off the Extranet that I found.

I love that you can access the Extranet EVERYWHERE. It's so much better then having to pay for it.

I swipe my gloved finger across the holographic window to minimize it and tap the empty pane above my inner forearm to start a new project in a new window. I tap the top of the window three times to name the Project and the VI, LIA, or Logarithmic Interactive Assistant.

This is going good so far.

I shrink the window and open up the Extranet window right next to it and used it to access my downloaded manuals.

Ok, the codes seem simple enough, just need to be careful of the algorithms.

It takes a while to get used to the layout of the coding, but I finally start building my VI.

The Quarian and I sit there in comfortable silence while absorbed in our own little personal tasks for about twelve minutes before she speaks up in a weak voice, "I've never met a human before... you are human right?"

I look to my left in shock, I had forgotten she was even there.

One for one. I'm getting better at reading people.

I smile at her and say, "Yes, yes I am... and you're on your Pilgrimage?"

She jumps back slightly and tilts her head questionably, "Yes, how did you know that?" Two for two.

I blink and think for a second before saying, "Your young and not on the Flotilla so I assumed." I look into her Blue visor and have to restrain myself back from leaning in closer to better see her face. It is going to be really uncomfortable trying to talk to Tali when I meet her.

I can't even tell if she's smiling or frowning, it's so strange! What if I insult her and I don't know it until she shoves a shotgun in my face?

Her posture becomes aggravated as she nearly yells, "I'm not that young! I'm twenty! Old enough to be on my own!"

Three for three. Huh, I'm actually a bit disappointed, I thought Quarians would be more difficult to read, but their actually a lot easier.

I lower my voice and say apologetically, "Calm yourself, I did not mean to offend." She relaxes slightly and stares at me for a moment.

She shifts uncomfortably and seems to be debating something in ternally before she says, "It's not that, I'm just nervous is all. Your the first person to actually talk to me in a civilized conversation since I got here."

Sadly I expected that, Quarian's aren't held in high regard anywhere. Maybe I could help with that later...

"Then let me introduce myself, my name is Scorpio." I nod heavily in the only Quarian greeting I thought I remembered from Tali's Trial. "It's a pleasure to meet you miss...?" I smile at her and tilt my head to indicate a question.

Her body language perks up and she says with pride, "Oh, my name is Seila'Wore nar_ Neema_, it's good to meet you as well." She nods her head slightly in acknowledgement and thanks.

The _Neema_...

I look down at my tool and finish another line of code so I could be distracted while I thought.

I have to sensor what I know about people and things, otherwise I'll become a target of information agents from Cerberus or the Shadow Broker. I have to be careful.

"_Neema_... a good ship, has a respectable admiral as captain, Han'Gerral. Very good man, another early starter on his pilgrimage." I hear myself say plainly as if I was describing the weather.

Or maybe my mouth disagrees.

Looking back up at her I could see the shock in her posture, "You know the captain?! How?!" I smile tentatively while finishing the thirtieth line of code and started tapping my foot to keep myself from running away from the conversation.

Oh man I hate being social.

I shift slightly and say, "I don't, I just know his reputation. Drawing off Batarian pirates during a raid to save a freighter is quite the feat, even if he did have help from Rael'Zorah vas_ Aleria_." I turn my head to cringe as I typed up another line of code.

Damn it! What the hell is wrong with me?! Do I want to die in a fiery skycar crash?!

She shook her head in incredulity, "Do you know everyone on the board or something?"

I finish the thirty-first line of code and nervously look her in the eyes through the light-blue tinted mask and say, "Yes, it's easy to find, hard to get right. A lot of people would call your people thieves and scoundrels, I don't."

I shift so I'm facing her fully and steal my resolve before speaking my mind, "I see a race that was abandoned by the Counsel in their hour of need, a race of misunderstood geniuses, tech savants, and good people desperate to keep the Quarian race from perishing. I see one of the last truly brilliant races slowly burning out under the grasp of time, and I see most of all, the most respectable individuals the galaxy has ever seen."

Phew! That's my motivational speech for the month! So glad I took that speech class in college. I don't even know I was that passionate about the Quarians.

Her reaction was a mix between slack-jaw, wide-eye, and breathing heavily in shock. "That... is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me! Or any Quarian! Thank you!" She jumps forward on the bench to wrap her arms around me in a tight hug. I carefully pat her on the back in response.

It shouldn't be, they have it hard enough without all the insults.

She pulls away and I smile at her brightly while saying, "Don't mention it, oh, I meant that sarcastically. It's easy to misunderstand humans, too many sayings and meanings." I swallow nervously.

I am really uncomfortable right now.

She giggles and her posture becomes a lot more relaxed as she says, "I don't know, your cute when your explaining your culture." I blush and look down at my tool to hide my face.

Hmm... I should do something nice for her.

I think for a moment before smiling timidly and turning towards her, "Seila, can you help me with building a personal VI that links through the Extranet to find searches and responds to verbal questioning?" She watches me for a second, thinking it over.

She's not going to do it.

She nods excitedly, "Yes! I'll need access to your tool and a few minutes, but I can do it."

A few minutes! Sheesh I'm under-skilled! It's taken me twelve minutes and I'm only a tenth done!

I close down and save my project and windows before accessing my EOFA account, "Thanks Seila, here." I transfer over 800 credits to her tool. She looks at her omni-tool as it beeps and gasps in shock.

She quickly turns to me fully and says, "Scorpio! I can't accept this!"

She looks like she was going to have a heart attack!

I place a hand on her forearm to calm her, "Consider it payment for the VI, and a little for listening." I smile as she visibly relaxes.

"Ok, let me see what I can do." She states happily as I slip off and hand her my omni-tool. She nods at it and slips it onto her right wrist. Her two fingers fly across her own tool at a speed I could barely keep up with, the windows popping up and closing faster then I thought possible for an organic.

Holy mother of the Goddess! She's just burning through that thing!

I sit back, cross my fingers over my stomach and just wait patiently as I watched an experienced programmer work her magic.

I still need to find a place to stay and it's getting really late. I check the time in the corner of Seila's omni-tool and sigh as I find it in its Kelish numerical equivalent. Ok, I guess I'm going to be waiting a bit longer.

I sit back and let my mind wander what I knew about Thessia.

Ok, it's the Asari Homeworld, the capital is Armali, It's ruled by the Asari Republics that reside on their own little island clusters around the planet, they hold public democratic legislation. Always a plus. Ok, it looks like the only things I know is just about all that anyone knows about Thessia.

I sigh internally and open my eyes to find a few people looking in our direction weirdly. Huh, well if someone does anything to try and hard Seila I'll kill them! I blink in shock for a second.

...

Ok, I have to get a hold of my temper! Damn! It's like I WANT to cause an incident!

"Done!" I jump at Seila's half synthesised voice next to me and look at her in surprise.

She's done already?

She hands me the band and I slip it on and activate it to see how she did. Seila points to my omni-tool and says, "I upgraded your overload program as well, it should jump targets with sixty percent decrease of damage now."

I hug her instantly, "Awesome!" I say loudly into her 'ear' while pulling away from her in a new-found excitement.

She smiles from behind her mask and rubs her arm nervously, "Oh! Umm, thank you." Her glowing eyes reminded me of the moon back home, I always liked the dark.

Shaking myself from my daze I, out of in-borne paranoia, check that everything was still where it was and when I see that it is I send 200 extra credits to her for thanks.

"Here, for the overload." I wave my omni-tool over hers and the transfer occurs with a low _beep_.

This has been a really weird day so far. Hopefully it doesn't get any weirder.

Seila nods in acceptance and says, "No problem, I left my contact information with your VI, call me if you ever need some programming done and I'll see what I can do." I could hear the smile in her voice.

Alright! My first friend/contact!

I smile at her and say, "Good luck on your pilgrimage Seila, I've got some other things to do, see you 'round." I stand and wave at her as I walk down the street.

I should go to that armor shop, what was its name? _The Chained Krogan_? Odd name.

I quickly activate my omni-tool and check the time and see it's 0240 Galactic Standard Time.

Pretty late by my standards. Well, I'll just shop for a little while longer before booking a hotel room or something.

I continue down the street towards the shop and breath in the cool nightly air. It's such a great night for nightly stroll. I look around me at the people passing by and my smile disappears. I quickly move along and try to avoid a few angry Asari and suspicious Salarians keeping to the shadows.

I look up at the neon lights, the barely visible stars in the skyline, the skycars flying by.

All of this is just too much. It's so awesome! The sights, the sounds, the colors, the peo-

I stop as I pass an alley, something didn't feel right. I look down the alleyway and focus my hearing on the small whimpering coming from the darkness in front of me.

What is that?

A muffled scream of a little girl brakes me from my train of thought. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up, I felt something, something I wished I'd never feel again. Desperation, fear, anger, pain, frustration, desire... My lower lip quivered as my ears caught another whimper. Tears grew in my eyes and I knew exactly what that whimper was from. Flashes of THAT night hit me at full-force... The pain, the blood, the anger...

"No..." I whisper is shock.

I let my mind work and I roll through my omni-tool and I find the Omni-Blade program.

Damn it I need omni-gel for this to work! God! The one thing I forget! How could I forget that?! It's extremely essential!

After a small mental debate I draw my dagger and ignore how it reacts to my touch as I crouch beside a waste disposal bin. A tear falls down my cheek as I wait the 15 seconds for my vision to adjust to the near darkness. I have to stifle a gasp at what I saw. A Turian, large and completely naked holding down a very very young Asari girl, probably 40 or 50 years old.

I'm just guesstimating that number and I know it.

_**Well it's better then thinking she's older!**_

My eyes grows wide as the second voice echoes through my mind. I hadn't heard that voice in eight years, it was my other personality that I had to take medication for a year to get rid of.

Why...

I shake my head.

I am not going insane!

_**Hello? Is anyone in here? **_

GET OUT OF MY HEAD!

I shake my head and grip my temples, trying to push the presence from my mind.

_**Just get off your ass and SAVE HER!**_

I was going to continue the debate but the sub-harmonic growls and grunts from the Turian Rapist focuses me as he tries to keep his victim from running. My anger flares as he punches her in the gut to stop her struggling.

I feel myself clench my teeth in fury.

Damn it! Fuck strategy!

I jump up from behind the dumpster and I feel something around me, tingling, something was around me and it felt strange, like a shifting blanket of warm water.

_**Ebb and flow...** _

The voice was soft, strange. My senses heighten and as quickly as I could I sneak up behind the Turian who was just about to rip the girls clothes off and ready my attack...

_**Release your anger.**_

"FUCKING GET OFF HER!" I scream. I don't think straight, my mind was in a haze, I just raise my hand and focus all of my anger on him, the watery feeling follows the path and slams against him in a blast of excessive bluish light that lit up the entire alley.

_**Reach out with your anger.**_

I didn't have time to be surprised, my mind started reacting to it and I holster the dagger before repeating the smashing of energy again and again as the Turian stumbles back and falls over, being pushed farther and farther away from the whimpering girl who was now at my feet.

_**FINISH IT!**_

With both hands I pull as much of the new feeling into my hands that I could and threw all of the blueish energy into him, throwing him into the alley wall with so much force that I could hear every plate and bone in his body crack and break from the impact.

_**This is your true power... ha ha ha HA HA!**_

The voice bled away as the watery feeling sub-sided, I could hear the Turian's screams echo into the street. I start breathing heavily and notice my teeth are clenched tightly from my anger. What the hell did I just do? The Turian's blue blood started to pool and grow to touch my shoes. My mind was frozed at the sight.

I can't...

Falling to my knees I hear people coming and turn my head to see two Asari officers approaching, weapons raised, "Armali Police! Everyone fre-"

They stop when they see the bloody mess that was the naked Turian embedded in the wall who was surprisingly still breathing and the Asari girl trying to help me up and saying thank you over and over through her tears.

What did I do?

My vision starts to blur and I feel like I was inside one of my visions. I blink and watch as two drops of tears slowly fall from my eyes to hit the ground pool of dark blue blood in a rippling effect.

My body feels like it was on fire, especially my spine. I fall fully onto the blood-soaked ground and try to forcibly slow my breathing as I'm rolled onto my back by one of the officers.

I couldn't hear what she was saying, I just lay there as the blood pooled around me, concentrating on breathing. I feel a sharp stinging in my shoulder and then my hearing sharpens and I finally start to panic.

"...hear me? Can you hear me?!" I nod up at the officer and she helps me up to a sitting position. "We need to get some food in you, you just overloaded your biotic amp." I just nod numbly.

My mind sharpens and my eyes widen.

Biotic what?

I clear my extremely dry throat, "I... don't... have... biotics..." Was all I could manage to say with my gravely voice.

Was that what that was? Biotics? The warm watery feeling? Wait... how do I have biotics? I'm not a biotic! I don't have an amp! I'm not even from this universe!

I feel my heart-rate double as the Asari officer frowns at me in confusion.

My mind starts drifting in and out of clarity. She turns my head and felt around. What is she doing? I blink and just focus on breathing.

After about half a minute of searching she gasps and turns my head back to its original position, "You just exhausted a massive amount if biotic energy young man, we need to get you to the hospital and have tests run." I nod, barely understanding what was going on.

Does anybody else hear that ringing?

I reach up to my ear and when I pull it back it had a bit of blood on it and I could hear the ocean. I lost feeling in my limbs.

My mind was moving rapidly as she surprisingly picks me up like a young child and walks me and the girl, who hadn't let my side since I collapsed, to an awaiting ambulance.

I can't... god does my head hurt!

I used all my strength to look around and I saw the bloodied and mangled naked Turian Rapist being whisked away in another ambulance and the alley being roped off by 6 other officers and a bunch of civilians gathering around in the late night breeze.

What's happening...?

I felt myself being put on a stretcher and another injection being administered via my left shoulder by an Asari first responder. My mind jumps at the shock and I feel my heart jump as the liquid flew through my blood stream. I feel something crack and my eyes dilate, shifting everything I see to look curved and blurry.

Suddenly my mind sharpens as a concept runs across my thoughts.

The interior centrifuge of the altering belting system of the shock-drive needs more work before it can begin to alter- to alter...

My vision began to blur again and I used the rest of my strength to try and comfort the crying little girl watching the paramedics scan me.

She needs to be... protected... safe...

My eyelids droop and I start to fall into unconsciousness.

A welcome change to my searin-

Something beeps and my head falls back onto the stretcher as everything goes black.

* * *

A/N The flash-back to the field-trip was something I thought about doing at one point, it never happened though. And I did learn a lot of my sneaking techniques from a girl named Victoria that was arrested for theft of a video camera at a local _Sears_ during my eight grade year in middle-school so it's based off of that.

Did you guys/gals get that Dead Space reference with the Salarian? :)

Scorpio is in for something very shocking... ;)


	4. The Burning Skycar

A/N Another chapter for the people! I've got to say its awesome being back! now that school is over maybe I can actually do this! Welcome back to madness! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA! ;) I love writing...

* * *

_*cough* *cough* "Oh... my head..." _

_Opening my eyes I look around and notice I was laying on my back inside some sort of hospital, but all the lights were off and all I could hear was a sharp *beep* *beep* *beep* from a heart monitor to my left. I take in a harshly sterile-smelling breath and resist the urge to cough up a storm. God do I hate hospitals. I groggily sit up and try to avoid screaming as my body lights up with searing pain. I hiss in response and shut my eyes tight. What the hell happened?_

_Trying to access my memory I find it, well, garbled. I open my eyes and notice they were adjusted to the near-blackness by now so I made use of the new resource by scanning the room for anything to tell me where I was. Everything was sterile white, the chairs, the floor, the ceiling, even all the walls were white. Wait... where's the door? I look around again and start to panic that I couldn't find the exit before I noticed a green panel on the wall at the foot of my bed. _

_I close my eyes and take another sharp, sterile, breath to calm myself before remembering what universe I was in. This is turning out to be the worst trans-dimensional travel story of all science fiction. I let the breath out and take hold of my new-found alertness. Testing my arms and legs for mobility, I find I can't move them without causing a lot of pain so I try and weigh my options.  
_

_Ok, speed of hobbling, the amount of doors, guards, police officers for attacking a civilian, other unknown factors..._

_..._

_ I figure my chances of escaping at about 9%. Oh I am in deep crap now. _

_I just lay back and decide to wait out my recovery, at least until I get more data._

_*COUGH!* I wince as my chest burns from the sudden convulsion. _

_God damn it! What the hell happen to me for it to hurt that bad?! Closing my eyes I focus my memory on the past again to try and see why I was in a hospital.  
_

_**Your never going to find it.**_

_My body tenses up and I open my eyes in fear at the sudden outburst. 'What the hell was that?' I mentally shout, I'm shocked when I hear it bounce off the walls and back to me.  
_

_..._

_What the hell is going on?_

_**I know what you do not SCORPIO...** I whip my head to the right and come face to face with a figure cloaked in black. _

_My eyes widen in shock. "Who are you?" I ask completely out of impulse while my mind matched the figure to something I'd seen before, something from just before I dropped into this universe. _

_The figure shifted and a black mist covered its body before molding into a man, a middle aged man I couldn't make out his face in the darkness but I didn't have to to know who the bastard was. _

_I move to grab him and my arms catch on the chains that bound them to the now hard metallic table. **Having some trouble are we?** I growled at him in response, he just smiles and tugs on one of my restrains until it digs into my wrist painfully. _

_**HA HA HAHAHAHA!** His maniacal laugh echoes across the stone walls surrounding us. _

_I hold back my primal fury and focus on trying to keep myself from crying. The walls, the table, the restraints, were all well known to me. I knew where I was now. I kept my eyes on him, knowing the drill and what I needed to do to get out. _

_The room shifts and flares to life as I notice I'm back in the hospital, lying immobile on the bed. and on impulse I look around at the nurses, doctors, the people seeming to be studying me, it goes by so fast that the only words I could make out were "Trauma- ... ep the ER! ... ying of ma- ... ot going to make it..." What is all this?! _

_All of a sudden everything freezes and I could see a woman, no an Asari, weeping next to my bed and another, much taller, comforting her. Sadness frozen in time, a picture of what death brings..._

_The cloaked figure appears out of thin air behind the two and places a bony hand upon the older Asari, it burns silently into her shoulder as the figure speaks, **This is what could happen...** My eyes look to the face of the weeping Asari and my mind recognizes her as the girl from... somewhere..._

_ "Why can't I remember?" I whisper unintelligibly. _

_The figure flashes into black mist and reappears right next to my bed. **Because I made it impossible!** The figure shouts, red piercing eyes burning with fury from behind his dark hood. _

_I avert my eyes for fear of being burned alive and notice something hidden inside his cloak. It was silver, small and sharp, it was strangely familiar. I try and think about what it could be and he closes his cloak to hide it as the entire scene flashes back to the dungeon. The dungeon that was my scene of torture for years after I saved Sarah. A prisoner inside my own mind. _

_My restrains disappear with a wave of the figure's hand and the bed disappears as well, dropping me unceremoniously onto the cold, stone floor painfully. _

_**Oh, how I have missed our time spent together Dylan, or should I call you Scorpio, or maybe Betrayer, the Engineer?**_

_ I grit my teeth and shift into a sitting position as he crouches in front of me. _

_**Or are you a survivor...** He bit out the words like they meant my death.  
_

_He watches me expectantly as I just sit there trying to make sense of what just happened. _

_I think over the options and remember what he usually asked me. I look him in his blood-red eyes and try and ignore the pure fear that nearly overwhelms my soul. I take in a smoky and burning breath and say, "I am everything and nothing. Without me there is no end to the war, with me there can be no peace, I am within and without, I am and am not, I am life and death, and you would be wise to remember that..."_

_..._

_..._

_The room is quiet and the torches lighting up the gray stone walls go out as the figure closes his eyes. My vision bleeds away and I feel faint as the dark inky blackness washes over me. _

_**You know me too well, and you have beaten me in another round Scorpio... you have bested me once again.** _

_I smirk in my discontent. That's how these sessions usually worked, we fight, he tortures, if he breaks me I die, if I trick him I wake up with, well, something, usually a prophecy or just a little bit of luck. My friends used to say I was gifted to be so well attuned to the universe. I never told them the cost. _

_I take a deep breath and try and calm myself, I never expected it to happen after how badly I beat him last time. _

_**You're quick-minded Scorpio, but a fool. You have waisted my time for so long, delayed the inevitable for too long.** He paces in front of me angrily. This is unusual to say the least. _

_I focus on him and my eyes widen as I feel what he wanted to do, what rules he wanted to break, what was GOING to happen.  
_

_My adrenaline spikes and I jump up from the floor and punch the side of his head. My hand burns from the contact but I ignore it as he staggers and pulls away before I snatch his cloak and run. _

_**YOU CANNOT ESCAPE ME DYLAN!** _

_I don't look back, I needed to get out of here, I needed to survive and waiting for him to kill me wasn't an option. _

_A blinding flash of light flies past me and I start to panic even more. HE'S THROWING FIREBALLS?! WHEN THE HELL DID HE LEARN HOW TO THROW FIREBALLS?! _

_The ball of flame hits the ground in front of me and a wall of fire bursts into existence. I quickly throw the cloak over myself before tumbling through, the hot flames licked at my still exposed arm and I scream in agonizing pain as I feel the flesh melt off in some places. I stagger from my front roll and in a panic I drop the cloak before just running._

_I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die!_

_I keep running and don't stop, even as the ground starts to crumble from under my feet and the sharp searing screams of agonizing pain erupted from my throat as the burning liquid that clung to my arm slowly grew further along my body. I could see the exit, a locked wooden door not ten meters away. _

_Almost there..._

_The flames burst into a vibrant blue as I hear the murderous screams from my personal demon, **YOU CANNOT STOP ME! I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND CLAIM MY PRIZE!** _

_My body slams into the door and I curl my uninjured hand around the knob and turn it to surprisingly find it unlocked. YES! I'M FREE! I throw the door open and I'm blinded by the immense white light that pours out from the opening. My mind goes blank..._

* * *

"I'm not going anywhere until I know he's going to be alright!" The young Asari girl stated in absolute fury. She needed to make sure her savior was going to survive.

The Asari Officer crossed her arms and shook her head at the girl's stubbornness, "Mila, if you want to give your mother a heart attack be my guest, but the human isn't going to wake up anytime soon and you know it! He took too much brain damage! I'd be surprised if he woke up at all!"

Officer Rila didn't need this, sure she wanted to see the human wake up, but statistically it was extremely unlikely. Not to mention that anyone who expels that much biotic energy without proper training practically commits suicide from all the resulting brain hemorrhages and neurological damage to the brain stem.

Mila shakes her head and looks back to the pale and hairy form sleeping on the hospital bed. "No, I'm going to wait and that's final." Mila hadn't ever seen a human before in her life and she couldn't waste the opportunity. He saved her from the Turian so she owed him a debt of existence. If she left her mother would be furious.

Rila sighs in exasperation and gives up on convincing the stubborn young maiden.

She walks over and sits down in the chair beside the medical equipment and to the left of the Human's bed. She needed a break, hell, this WAS her break.

She looks to the prone human and her focused, sharp purple eyes shifts worriedly between him and the monitors keeping the Human safe. _I should have just left a _Get Well_ holo-card or something. Why do I need to get involved with someone else's recovery?_ Rila asked herself while shifting to get more comfortable in the metal seat.

She knew the answer already, the Human seemed... strange. Rila hadn't known it when she found him in that ally, stained with the blue blood of a Turian General. She had felt so enamored by his very presence that she just could not stay away. "I cannot even speak to him and still, I feel drawn to him for some unknown reason, Goddess knows why. I'm not attracted to him, personally I really hate all the fur Humans have. It just seems too... weird, scratchy." She whispers quietly to herself.

The strange clumps of fur above the Human's eyes shift downwards in what she could assume was a frown, as if he could sense her thoughts.

Rila sighs and pulls her eyes from the Human before looking down at her omni-tool to check the time. Her non-existent eyebrows shoot up in shock, She had been there for over six hours! Her shift ended ten minutes ago!

"Damn it!" She whispered angrily. She had lost a lot of work lately and she was starting to worry for her job's security. Closing down her omni-tool she sighs with her new-found exhaustion and rubs her tired eyes.

_I need to get more sleep... but I need to stay just in case he wakes up... but I really need to eat too... but I NEED to talk to him- Gah! What is wrong with me?!_

She drops her head into her hands and lets a breath out. Every-time she closed her eyes she saw him. Every-time she stopped thinking for even a moment she heard his voice, it was maddening.

"Ohh..." Her ears perk up and her mind freezes as a rough and unused, yet familiar voice, snapped all her thoughts out of her head. Her eyes widen as she searches the room for the sound and then they land on the Human and she gasps in shock as the Human starts to sit up.

"Oh Goddess! Nurse! He's waking up!" Mila shouted out the door in a panic.

Rila's heart started racing, her hands were clammy, her mind blank. She was actually going to meet him, the strangely curious Human she saved, and for some obscure reason she felt absolutely elated.

* * *

_My head feels like it's on fire, my neck burns, and my body aches. Where am I? What happened?_

"Oh Goddess! Nurse! He's awake!" A woman shouts as I try and fail to sit up.

I try to open my eyes and hiss at the bright light before shutting them tightly and wincing at my aching muscles.

"NURSE!" My mind strains to keep itself running as I finally get myself into a sitting position.

Testing my limbs I raise the arm that was seared from the wall of fire into my limited vision. I sigh in relief that it wasn't immobile.

_Now I know I'm going to be alright._

A strong hand slams against my chest, forcing me back onto my back and my eyes shoot open as my adrenaline spikes in fear. "Stay calm!" I ignore the voice and grip onto something soft and throw in a panic. A sharp yelp hits my ears and the pressure is gone.

_What?_

"GODDESS! NURSE! FOR THE LOVE OF THE GODDESS PAGE THE (enraged Asarian comment) DOCTOR!"

My adrenaline blocks out the pain and I jump out of bed in a panic. I look to my right and in a split second I'm holding a syringe from being jammed into my throat with one hand and fighting off the other arm trying to restrain me.

"No! You will not take me!" I yell defiantly before taking hold of some strange watery feeling and forcing the person off of me and across the room in a flash of blue light.

My vision clears up and focuses onto the ruffled looking Asari nurse laying dazed on the floor in front of me. She stares up at me in total shock, mouth agape, and eyes wide as I stare at her in equal shock and confusion. _What in the hell just happened?_

"Ow..." We both look to my left and find another Asari, this time in some light armor painted with some sort of authority crest. She was laying awkwardly in a metal chair and rubbing her head crests. "Oh I really didn't see that coming." She says in her slight daze before shaking her head clear and standing.

I watch her carefully and stop as I take in her face. Plain for the most part, light violet skin, no visible tattoos, deep violet eyes...

My mind freezes as I recognize her from my psychotic dream. She was the older Asari comforting the...

"Where's the little girl from the alley?" I ask while looking around in a panic.

"H-here, I'm here." I look over to the other side of the bed and find a very young light-blue skinned Asari staring at me in amazement.

My mind instantly recognizes her and as part of my paranoid precaution I look her over quickly to make sure she was alright. Her body language practically screams her insecurity, and her eyes seems to mirror how tired she looks. Her ripped and blood-stained clothes were replaced with some strange hospital scrubs.

"Thank goodness, I thought you had gotten hurt!" I exclaim in absolute relief.

She closes her agape mouth and blinks once before blushing and looking away while stuttering out, "I-I am a-alright. T-thank you for s-saving m-me."

I breathe a sigh of relief that seemed endless, she was safe, It wasn't too late. I smile at her in my sudden elation. She looks up at the same second and looks at me wide-eyed as her hands start to fidget nervously.

Sensing how uncomfortable she was I direct my attention over to the officer Asari I threw into the wall somehow. She's staring at me with the same strangely amazed look.

"What?" I ask on impulse.

She blinks and shakes her shock off as I catch something out of the corner of my eye and throw up something solid to block an attack from the woman from before.

I blink in surprise at the bluish wall that was growing out of my extended hand like an invisible field of energy.

_Ok, this is-_

The field dissipates instantly and I stand there staring at the woman laying flat on her back in front of me, the syringe lying a foot to her right.

I meet her eyes and I see something murderous in them.

_Oh, crap..._

In the split second that she reaches for the syringe and I reach out to grab it from across the room. I'm surprised when I feel it in my grasp when I close my hand and pull it away from the now frustrated woman.

"Stop that!" The angry woman exclaims while diving for the syringe again.

_Oh no you don't!_

I yank my aching arm to the right and bump into the hospital bed. I catch myself on the edge to avoid falling over and watch as the syringe shatters at tremendous speed against the door frame, just missing a very familiar face.

The very elderly-looking Asari wearing a dark purple pair of scrubs flinches away from the shattered glass and looks at me wide-eyed before saying, "Damn it! Meline I told you that he was not ready to wake up yet!" She looks at the angry woman from before and scowls dangerously, her strangely vibrant green eyes shimmering with fury as she clenched her fists.

"I'm sorry Dr. Jeilus but he fought to quickly for me to sedate him!" Meline states in apology.

_Oh, My, GOD! Dr. Jeilus?!_

I stare at her in shock as she shakes her head in annoyance, "I tell you to do one thing, ONE and you even screw that up!" Jeilus puts her hands to her hips and glares at Meline.

Meline cringes and opens her mouth to explain, "But mistress, I-" Jeilus holds up her right hand to stop her.

"I don't want to hear it! go back to the lab and take inventory!" She points out the door behind her and down the hall as a few of the other people stop to see what was going on.

"Ok, sorry, I'll just go..." Meline utters while trying to hide her blush while dashing out the door and down the hall.

Jeilus sighs and yells out the door, "Meline! Wrong way!" And points to the right as Meline runs past the door again, this time going the right way.

I watch the authoritative stance of Dr. Jeilus to find anything to show she wasn't who she was. I couldn't, she was too powerful.

_Ok, so apparently one of the characters I wrote back in my universe actually exists?_

Jeilus sighs as the door shuts with a low hiss and locks into place, "Goddess if she wasn't my niece I'd probably have fired her into the sun by now." She mutters while rolling her shoulders and looking back at me.

_Yeah, she's definitely Jeilus. HAHA!_

"SO..." She starts to talk but takes a second to look around the room and assess what was different, just like I wrote her to be like.

_This is unprecedentedly awesome!_

She watches the little Asari girl wring her hands for a moment before walking forward and grasping them to halt their annoying pattern, just like I wrote her.

"Mila, I called your mother, she'll be arriving shortly." Jeilus says forcefully, but not unkindly to the young Asari.

_Mila, huh, well at least introductions won't matter now._

Mila stomps her foot like the young child she is and states, "No! I do not want to leave! I am happy staying here!"

Jeilus sighs in exasperation and takes Mila by the shoulders while creasing her white-spotted tattooed eyebrows in a dangerous glare, "You can't stay here, you've already been gone for over a week Mila. Your mother was already angry as all hell when I told her you were here!"

Mila flinches slightly, but shakes her head defiantly anyways, "No! I have a debt of existence to repay and I must uphold that debt!" She looks to me while she says this and I stare at her wide-eyed.

_Oh crap, am I going to have someone following me around for all eternity like that EXTREMELY agitating fan from Oblivion? Oh how I wish I could permanently kill that little, mother of a- jack in the back- flying charus bug- fake son of a whore... Seriously! Why couldn't the programmers let you kill the Fan! It's an infringement of our basic gaming rights to deny us the gratification of getting rid of the annoying civilians that follow us into caves filled with vampires only to scare the living hell out of us when we turn around!_

I take a breath and shake my head to calm myself before remembering where I was and looking around at everyone staring at me like I was about to explode.

"What?" I say while shrugging off their attention. Jeilus shakes her head while smiling and quietly chuckling under her breath.

_Oh, you know what I was thinking Jeilus, I gave you that ability, now look around like the goddess was talking to you and all will be alright._

Sadly she doesn't do anything but continue to laugh quietly, but Mila starts to stare at me like I was naked or something. I shift uncomfortably under her gaze.

_Ok, this is getting embarrassing._

"There is a lot to talk about you two, and I have sat here long enough trying to get the courage to speak, so it is my turn." The officer states as I turn around to meet her in the eye.

She looks at me deeply, trying to watch for anything strange.

_I think I'm not going to like this conversation._

"What do you remember from the night in the alley?" The officer asks carefully.

A frown creases my brow as I remember an alley, a forest and some Quarian.

_Hmph, sounds like the beginning of a bad joke._

I focus on the incident more and finally the scene flashes before my eyes, the blood, the screaming, the Turian trying to hold the little Asari girl down to feed his dark compulsions...

I shake away the images and say quietly, "I... remember everything."

She watches me for a moment before I sigh and sit back onto the bed spread to alleviate my aching muscles.

"So, big deal! I'd celebrate." Jeilus exclaims while sitting down next to me on the bed.

I let my head droop as the intense waves of regret hit me like a wall of pain.

"I don't celebrate severely injuring people to the point of near-death." I bite out while trying to rationalize the incident, I couldn't.

"He's dead." The officer stated plainly.

I look up with a confused expression, "What?"

The officer raises a non-existent eyebrow and repeats, "He's dead."

"Who?" I ask, trying to figure out what she was talking about.

"The Turian General you attacked in the alley? He's dead." She states slightly apologetic.

...

I watch her for a second as I take in the information.

"What? He's, Dead? Oh shit... Oh crap! Oh god!" I exclaim, completely panicking.

_I'm going to be assassinated! Of all the people to commit a crime it just HAD to be a high-ranking Turian General! I'm going to die!_

My breathing rate increases with my pounding heart as I search for an exit route.

_I am not dying any time soon!_

Jeilus grabs be by the shoulders and shakes me slightly, "Calm down! Calm down Human!"

I ignore her and continue to let the thoughts of death manifest, the endless quiet, nothing left...

_Maybe I'll get lucky and the Hierarchy will torture me for a few years to pro-long my life. _

*SLAP* "AHHH!" I scream as Jeilus's hand hits my cheek at full force, snapping me out of my initial panic.

_Ow, Ow... that's definitly going to leave a mark! Ah! My head's spinning!_

I try and slow my breathing while rubbing my extremely soar cheek and head, trying to alleviate the headache that erupted from the impact.

"The Turian had it coming! He was going to rape Mila over there," Jeilus points her thumb behind her as I look over to see Mila cowering in the corner, eyes as wide as saucers. "...If you hadn't stepped in, that makes you a hero in my books!" She slaps my shoulder and I wince at the ache in my muscles.

"I'm no hero..." I absentmindedly state as I rub my now sore shoulder.

_No hero kills people on purpose._

Jeilus watches me for a moment before nodding in acceptance and standing up to unlock the door. "I've got some-" She freezes mid-sentence as the door opens to a very regal-looking Asari.

We all stare at the strange addition to the room as Mila tries to look around Jeilus to see who it is.

_Uhh... who's this? I don't remem-_

"MOTHER!" Mila screams out as she dives forward and practically throws Jeilus out of the way to slam into the regal Asari in a huge hug.

Jeilus staggers to the right and crashes into some left-over medical equipment, she lays there, a among boxes and piles of cloth while a slightly ripped bag of red blood dripped slowly onto her painful and dazed face.

"Damn, I guess she really misses her mother." The officer states in astonishment next to me as I carefully stand up.

"Mila! Oh thank the Goddess you are alright!" The Asari wraps her arms tightly around her daughter, embracing in a loving and heart-warming moment of daughter re-uniting with mother.

I smile at the sight, it was refreshing and it allowed me to focus on the present.

_I'm still in the MEU, I'm still broke, I still have..._

I look down and notice for the first time that I was wearing a sterile white night gown and didn't have any of my possessions. I look around for a second in a slight panic before I find my omni-tools and HAPTIC gloves lying on a small counter built into the wall next to my bed.

_Oh, good, phew! I was worried I'd have to start over again._

I quickly stagger across the two steps between me and my tools, holding myself up with my elbow I slip on my gloves and slide on the two omni-tool bands. I activate them and breath a sigh of relief as they activate with ease.

_At least that's out of the way. I'd be SO screwed if I lost these._

"You! I must know who you are so I might reward you for saving my only daughter." I spin around and look at the Regal Asari in shock.

I blink and think about what to say before remembering what my new name was and saying, "My name is Scorpio, and it isn't a rescue if someone died during the attempt."

She wraps an arm around her now clearly short daughter's shoulders and smiles, "Your efforts were not in vain Scorpio, the man who died was a sadist, and I would not have shown him mercy if he would have lived." I match her smile insincerely.

_I still don't feel alright with killing a General._

The officer steps forward from my left, "Neither would I" She extends a hand, palm-side up towards the Regal Asari. The Asari places her free hand palm-side down on-top of the officer's "Officer Rila of the APC, I was the first upon the scene. It is an honor to meet such a high ranking Matriarch."

Rila smiles calmly and the Matriarch returns it, "Hello to you too Detective, it is good to finally meet you as well." She states with a curiosity only a Matriarch could portray.

_What? Matriarch? Oh this is becoming too much..._

I watch as Jeilus stands up off the medical pile and wipes the blood off her face before straightening her scrubs, "Yes well, we are all glad you are here Matriarch, although there is still something we need to discuss about Scorpio."

We all look at her, our attention completely grasped by her admission.

_I have a feeling this isn't going to be good._

"Scorpio attacked a Turian General with BIOTICS." Jeilus states with equal astonishment and seriousness.

I blink and look around at everyone as they stare at me in shock, amazement, and knowing astonishment.

_I don't remember using biotics. I just felt... something. Hmm... What DID I feel? I remember some sort of watery feeling and then I heard that voice and everything just sort-of happened._

"That's not the only thing." Jeilus states while walking around the bed and up to me, I take a step back and bump into the counter.

"Hold still." I watch her cautiously as she lifts her activated omni-tool in front of me and takes a medical scan from what I could see. She types something into the display and frowns in concentration before smiling and looking me in the eye, "You're at optimal health, and as soon as those test results come back we'll have you fitted with a bio-amp." My eyes widen in fear.

_Oh hell no!_

"I am not having something implanted into my spinal column!" I yell in absolute shock.

Jeilus jumps back slightly from the outburst and holds her hands up to defend herself, "Calm down calm down! Sheesh its like dealing with a PTSD sufferer!"

My eyes widen even more then before and I swallow as memories of how I earned my name flowed past my vision. I shake my head to clear it and find everyone looking at me with concern. "I'm fine, now I am not EVER going to submit to ANYTHING being integrated into my anatomy."

Jeilus shakes her head, "No, not an option, you are a very powerful biotic and without proper training you WILL end up killing yourself."

"May I make a suggestion?" We all turn and look at the Matriarch.

She steps forward and raises one hand to address the room while keeping the other within arms reach of Mila. Her features harden and she looks to Officer Rila and nods when she gives the Matriarch a strange look, then she does the same to Jeilus before looking directly at me, "You are to become an acolyte of the Huntress."

I watch her for a moment of silence as Rila and Jeilus watch me with unending stares.

_What am I supposed to do?_

Seemingly noticing my confusion the Matriarch smiles and says, "You are to be enrolled at the Asari Academy of the Huntress to further your understanding and training of Natural Biotics."

...

_Holy frick! I mean holy mother of GOD! This is..._

My mind starts to unravel from how insane the thought was.

_HOW IN ALL OF CREATION IS THIS EVEN REMOTELY POSSIBLE?!_

My adrenaline spikes and I stare at the Matriarch in absolute astonishment.

"What! He cannot train there! He is not a natural biotic!" Rila exclaims angrily.

"Aw but that is where you are incorrect detective. Jeilus would you please." The Matriarch gestures to Jeilus and she in turn sighs in exasperation while turning on her omni-tool.

Jeilus clears her throat and activates a 3D projector to enhance her display. A skeletal system shows up on between the five of us, fractures to certain areas of the structure are apparent, "This is Scorpio's skeletal system, there had been serious fracturing within a few hours of the incident in the alley." Jeilus types something into her omni-tool as I watch the structure overlay with what looks like a nervous system of some sort.

_This is... I don't know what this means._

I look to Jeilus and she seems to ignore me in favor to align the two systems perfectly, "This is Scorpio's nervous system, as you can see there has been serious re-build of it over time. There are twice as many neurons firing then are required in a normal Human according to the neurologists I've called from Earth."

_Oh great, now I'm recognized in their systems._

"We had difficulty finding your biometrics in any system in Counsel or Alliance space." Jeilus looks at me questioningly.

I shift under her gaze for a moment before finding the right lie to tie it all in, "I was born to a small town where medical care only extended to the severe cases such as head injuries, broken bones, etc. I have never in my life broken or injured, well, anything so I was never documented in the local systems." I internally screamed at myself for continuing my trail of lies.

_I'm a terrible person._

Jeilus nods in understanding, "Hmm, well that explains the signs of hair-line fracture remodeling that were never treated properly, as well as dozens of scars that weren't fully healed as well as the absence of any record of your strange nervous system."

"What is so strange about it? It looks like an Asari's from what I remembered from biology back in college." Rila comments while crossing her arms in front of her in impatience.

Jeilus looks back to the display, "It's not normal for any other being outside of Asari to have such an extensive outlay, and we all know it is nearly impossible for sentient life outside of the Asari to use their biotics usefully without an amp."

Rila's non-existent eyebrows shoot up in realization, "He's...?"

Jeilus and the Matriarch nod simultaneously while Mila looks at me and smiles.

_Ok, this is getting confusing._

I clear my throat to get their attention, "And what does all this mean exactly?" I ask with uncertainty.

Four pairs of eyes look directly at me for a moment before Mila states, "Are you really that thick?" I blink in slight shock and look at Jeilus for answers while the Matriarch silently scolded Mila for her outburst.

"You're a Natural Biotic Scorpio, welcome to the club!" She states with excitement.

I take in a deep breath and hold it to avoid screaming out in shock.

_I'm not a biotic! I'm not even from this universe! I'm not going to become some kind of lab rat, I'm not going to be thrown into an academy for people like me, and I definitely don't want something implanted inside of me! I'm new here! I can't have this happen to me so soon!_

I cough out my deep breath and can feel myself start to go into cardiac arrest from all the stress.

_Oh god... _

Someone grabs me by the shoulders and leads me to the bed. I sit down and steady my breathing before looking up to see Rila still holding onto me, "Thanks, this is a lot to take in..."

She nods to me and I catch a hint of a smile pulling at the corner of her slightly darker purple lips. "It is no problem Scorpio, even I am having difficulty understanding a lot of this. I mean, the first sentient being outside of the Asari to become a Natural biotic just happens to be the same one to save a Matriarch's daughter from a rapist Turian General?" She lets out a short laugh, "It sounds like something out of a bad science fiction movie! Haha!"

I smile slightly and try to get myself to laugh a little and fail.

_This is beyond anything I could have expected._

"Jeilus, thank you for the presentation and when those tests are finished forward the entire bill to be covered by my private funds." I look up to find the display shut down and the Matriarch talking with Jeilus in the doorway.

Jeilus bows to her respectfully, "Of course, and I have already forwarded you Scorpio's contact information for further instructions as to where to apply for AAH."

The Matriarch smiles, "That has already been covered." She turns to the rest of us while holding Mila into place with one arm. "May the Goddess shine light onto us all."

Rila stands and bows to her before saying, "May the Goddess favor you Matriarch Lidanya."

_Holy what?!_

I look directly at the Matriarch and I suddenly see it, her facial tattoos should have given her away sooner.

"And lets hope she does, another group of tourists became violent and tried to take control of the Destiny Ascension while I was away." Matriarch Lidanya states with slight annoyance.

"When will they learn." Mila says while shaking her head slightly, "You cannot even hope to match the power of a Matriarch, let alone her ship's trained Commandos."

Lidanya smiles down at her daughter's comment and looks up at me as if she just remembered something, "On behalf of the Asari Republics I Matriarch Lidanya grant you, Scorpio all the benefits and consequences associated with your admission into the ranks of the most highly trained Commandos and Huntresses at the Armali Academy of the Huntress." She ends the powerful speech with a smile and a bow in my direction.

I stand at the behest of my injuries and bow in respect towards Lidanya. "Thank you, it is such an honor to be held in the same ranks of the most powerful biotics in Asari space Lidanya."

She shakes her head, "No thank you, without your timely intervention I would have lost my only daughter."

This is becoming one of the best days of my life.

Mila looks between her mother and me and shrugs before saying, "So he's a natural biotic like me?" Lidanya looks down at her daughter and smiles as she nods. "I really don't get how the Goddess had a role in his existence if he's like us then." Mila exclaims.

I spot Rila face-palming to the side and I hear Jeilus mutter, "Something borne of youth I guess."

I sit back down onto the bed and watch them for a moment, but something starts to bug me so I ask, "Uhh... I have to ask, how old is Mila?"

Mila smiles widely and states proudly, "I'm 25, 26 next month!" Her voice cracks when she says 'month', prompting the entire room to burst out laughing.

_HAHAHA! Oh my goodness that is so cute!_

Mila frowns intensely while looking around at everyone, "What? What's so funny?" She asks

Lidanya stops laughing instantly and says, "You are young and full of prideful energy Mila, something those of us touched by more years can appreciate."

"Ok, so why is Scorpio laughing then. He's younger then me!" Mila exclaims in exasperation.

I watch as everyone looks at me for the second time today.

_Ok, so why did I think it was funny? Oh! Right!_

"Mila, I'm 19. Which if you convert that amount of time related to that of an average Asari I'd be about 152, give or take a few years. and as such you'd be about 3-4 years old as a Human, this makes me older then you are in that retrospect."

Jeilus nods and looks to Mila as Lidanya and Rila look contemplative. "Well, ok then. I still think I should be treated with more respect!" Mila exclaims.

"Mila!" Lidanya scolds her with a slight nudge. Mila in turn looks away ashamed while muttering an insincere apology I can't even hear.

_Strange child, she reminds me of a spoiled rich kid with eight siblings that squandered the family fortune down to a meager sum for her, of which she gets no respect for._

...

_I have really got to stop analyzing people so often._

"Our shuttle will be leaving shortly. May the Goddess go with you Scorpio." Lidanya says while leading Mila out of the room. I barely have any time to look up before they're gone.

Rila rolls her neck and shakes her head to wake herself up. I watch her body language intently and ask, "Tired?"

She looks over at me, surprised that I took and interest in her. "How did you know?" She asks before yawning.

_Ok, that was a bit interesting, I've never seen an Asari yawn before. It somehow reminds me of the Banshee's from Mass Effect 3, but a lot less disturbing._

I shiver slightly at remembering how they always managed to corner me in battle. "I noticed it in you body language, a lot of the basics such as attraction, anger, joy, sadness, and desperation are easily seen in their cross-species equivalence."

She stares at me strangely while rubbing the back of her neck.

"I was in school to become a psychologist." I state as a fact.

She nods in understanding. "Oh, ok, seems like both of us aren't doing what we were trained to do." She smiles in her exhaustion.

I watch her carefully, then I see it. She was watching me, how I moved, how I reacted to certain things, what I was saying and how I was saying it.

I smirk at her, "Yeah, it's hard finding meaningful work as a Psychologist."

Her eyes widen, "Uh, how did you-?"

"I saw you watching me." I answer.

She shakes her head before straightening her posture and looking at me directly, "Oh! How rude of me." She extends her right hand out in what I assume was an Asarian greeting like she did with that Matriarch, her hand was out-stretched palm-side up.

I smile and place my own atop of her own like the Matriarch did.

_**There's nothing you can do...**_

* * *

_I blink and look around for a second, trying to hear the voice again. I find the room empty, "Hello Rila. My name is Scorpio, just Scorpio." I spin around in the now dark room and find myself and Rila greeting each-other, but I could see myself. _

_What is this?_

_Rila leans forward and says, "I've felt so alone lately that it's killing me internally. I need you to help me! I need you to save me!" She exclaims in total dismay._

_I focus on her and she turns to look at me, really through me. I turn around and find a Batarian, or what I think is a Batarian, standing there with a gun in his hand. I blink and a gunshot goes off..._

* * *

I open my eyes in a fright and let go of Rila's hand.

_What the hell was that?!_

Rila looks at me in confusion and tilts her head in question. I stare at her fearfully and I could swear I saw what her end was in her eyes.

"Scorpio?" She asks.

I shake my head and block out the strange vision I just had.

_I'm not insane. I wrote a paper on it, I should know what insane is._

"I'm fine Rila." I say distantly.

"How do you know my name?" She asks.

I watch her watch me for any lies before I say truthfully, "You introduced yourself as such to Matriarch Lidanya so I remembered it incase I needed to speak to you." She looks away for a second then back to me as if I was a talking fruit so I clarify, "I have a rare case of PTSD that enhances my selective memory to the point at which it's partially eidetic."

"So I was right! HA! I'm always right." We look to my right and find Jeilus standing there watching the two of us.

Rila backs away from me immediately and I turn fully to Jeilus to finally get some answers, "Yes, and I want to know everything that has happened to me while I was at this... Well you can start at that."

Jeilus raises a tattooed eyebrow and says, "You really have no clue what day it is do you?" I frown at her but shake my head. "Then check it on your omni-tools for Goddess' sakes!"

I look down and activate my Savant I before checking the last time I logged in. It was over eight days ago.

"What the hell!" I shout in shock.

"Yeah, you were in a coma for quite the while, we were worried you were brain dead for a while." Jeilus stated nonchalantly.

_Oh if I wasn't the one who wrote you to be so insensitive Jeilus I would strangle you right now!_

I glare at her to show it wasn't funny. Rila steps forward slightly and comments, "Mila and I were really worried you would not wake up at all. It was really a relief that you did. I did not want such a strange and unique Human to die on my watch." She smiles at me, making the situation even more uncomfortable.

I let the idea of being in a coma for eight days fester in my thoughts for a moment before Rila speaks up again, "You know, your going to be the first Alien to enroll at AAH in the history of the school, which by the way, is over 6,000 years old." Rila stated in amazement while completely oblivious to my inner turmoil.

_Well, that was kind of out of the blue._

I blink at her for a second before answering her unspoken question with, "I know, and I'm honored because of it."

_This is becoming quite insane._

She smiles and opens her mouth to speak but a ping on her omni-tool interrupts her. Her eyes widen as she reads the message and she quickly looks up and says, "I've got to go, see you around Scorpio!" Before literally running out the door.

I shout after her, "Ha! I hope not!"

_She is making me so very awkward, awkward indeed captain obvious, why thank you my captain._

...

_I'm going insane._

I look over to Jeilus and she introduces herself, "I am Dr. Jeilus it's a pleasure to have met you Scorpio." She extends her hand in a traditional hand-shake.

I brush off my surprise before shaking her hand and repling warmly, "Like-wise Jeilus, it's been a pleasure for me as well."

_Because I wrote you._

She walks around the bed and grabs a small crate from the floor before placing them onto the bed itself, "These are your personal affects by the way, although when we tried to clean your clothes they combusted for some reason, maybe personal absorption of biotic energy that reacted with the de-sterilization fumes and ignited the organic fabric. Anyways, I took the liberty of shopping for you while you were out. I was wondering how you felt about a full-body suit capable of self-sealing and built in cloak." She smirks at my skeptical expression and pulls out the suit.

I am shocked into silence.

I take the soft yet strangely strong black fabric in my hands and marvel at the complexity of the inter-woven fibers. My mind instantly tried to match it to other suits I've seen.

_It resembles Kasumi's suit mixed with that of a Quarian's, strange yet also quite appealing..._

The main color was black with a deep crimson-red highlight around the rim of the hood and down the crossing belts that intersect over the abdomen. It was a masterpiece of straps, fabric, and metal that took my breath away.

"This is... how did you find this!" I exclaim in absolute shock and gratitude. "Also, why did you go out and buy something for me? We only just met around eight days ago and I wasn't even conscious!"

Jeilus smiles weakly and rubs her arm uncomfortably, "Actually I lied, I don't know who sent it,"

_That's a-little disconcerting, but I'll think about that later._

"But I looked it up and it's worth over 3 million credits!"

My jaw drops, "Holy hell!"

_Not a day in this universe... wait..._

A question nags at my already fraying nerves resurfaces, "How bad were my injuries?"

She blinks at the sudden change in subject, but answers anyways. "Pretty bad neural scaring, if you had used your biotics for just a little bit longer you would have had some nasty burns down your spine, or you might be permanently paralyzed. I'm not good at guessing." I swallow involuntarily.

_Sheesh... anyways, I'm a bit concerned with the suit, and now that I think about it, why was that voice I heard in the alley so familiar?_

...

_I'll think about it later._

I look down at the suit before me and smile. "I'm going to see how this thing fits." Jeilus took that as a notice of privacy and steps out as I start to strip out of the strangely comfortable, and thin, hospital gown.

I try and look around for a place to start and finding none I call up my omni-tools and try and find a manual.

_I've got to learn how to use armor some time. Ok, so first I need to put on the under-suit._

I slip on the extremely thin fabric that apparently breathed, which is always good. I'm surprised that it fits me perfectly until I read that most under suits were one-size-fits-all.

_Better then not having it be tight enough, or being so tight I can't move._

I reach back behind me and using my great dexterity I zipped myself up. Next is the main body of the armor/suit.

_Hmm, it looks like I'll have to undo a few straps and locking clamps to get it on._

I yank at one of the clamps every-which-way possible before I find a thin release on the edge of the thin disk. I nod at the new knowledge and quickly un-clamp the rest of the suit and stagger slightly as I throw it on.

_Oh, a little bit heavy..._

I shift the flexible plates around a bit before I realize I have it on backwards and turn it around.

_There we go, much better. Also, a bit restrictive, but it keeps you alive so I can't complain._

Tightening the straps and locks into place I read that there was usually a CPU in these suits so I scan the suit with my Savant I before happily connecting it to the Soft-Suit computer.

"Welcome to the AX 12 Advanced Infiltration Suit, please identif-" I mute the annoying mono-toned voice and link LIA into the systems.

"LIA, connect any and all data regarding this specific suit including status updates directly to my omni-tools."

...

"Of course user." She, it replies.

"Oh, just call me Scorpio LIA." I say while pulling the leggings and sleeves to my ankles and wrists.

After slipping on the very flexible and supportive calf-high boots and locking them into place, I notice some mechanical slots on the gauntlets when I slip them on.

"LIA, what are the slots on the gauntlets for?"

...

"Advanced HAPTIC Sensory Tools for use in a range of areas such as control panels and hacking modules."

"Thank you LIA."

_Ok, good thing I didn't BUY those HAPTIC gloves then._

The gauntlets seal into place as I slip my omni-tools on. The fingers of the gauntlets were thinner then I thought they would be, but they had these small rubber grips sown into the inside of the palm.

"LIA? What are these grips on the interior of the gloves for?"

...

"Scorpio, they are an enhanced locking system designed to hold the user's weapon steady for enhanced firing assistance." It answers.

_Wow... that is awesome. I am definitely going to like that feature as soon as I find some weapons._

Something grabs my attention from the crate and look inside to find my Dagger, still as perfect as the last time I saw it, laying on top of an OSD.

Grabbing the OSD I let it magnetically click into place on my wrist and a message appears on the screen of the omni-tool.

It read,

_I know who you are, the paths are set, do not try and change them._

_~D_

_Who's this 'D', and what paths are they talking about?_

I ignore the message for later review and happily slip my dagger into a conveniently placed holster on one of the straps intersecting my abdomen.

Finally I look at the hood. the fabric was thicker then I'd expect from a head covering so I look at the instructions.

_An interior cloth/breather mask woven into the suit that also clamps onto the hood. Wait... where are the...? Oh, I see, it filters the air through a tubing system that cycles through a compression of the suit when in low atmosphere. I may have no idea how to build it or how it exactly runs all of these functions, but at least I know how it works to a small degree. That's enough for me._

Clamping the hood in place and adjusting the suit slightly I look at myself in a weirdly placed mirror to the right of the doorway and I gasp in shock.

_I look bad-ass in this suit! I look deadly and powerful! Liara's going to have to watch herself when she gets a load of this!_

I scrolled through the functions of the suit using my omni-tool and frown at the 'Optical Cloak' function.

_How did someone get cloaking technology? Isn't that only during ME2 and ME3? Maybe it's experimental?_

I stop scrolling as I feel something tug at the back of my mind. I turn and see Jeilus smirking and checking me out, "Damn, Scorpio if I wasn't hitting the Matriarch stage in a few years I'd be swooning!" I laugh with a slight blush tinting my cheeks.

_Wow, being checked out by a character I wrote to be open with their sexuality, talk about irony._

I look back to the mirror, "Yeah, this will do nicely." I state happily.

I may be completely lost and alone in this new universe with no employment and barely a future worth fighting for, but... Ok I lost where I was going with that. Hmm... I should do something mysterious, ok cloak is on my quick-link, nice. Got to test it sometime.

I hit a quick-link on the wrist of the suit and cloak spontaneously. Quietly stepping up to the confused Jeilus I kiss her on the nose and say, "See you later Jeilus." In my fake French accent voice. She jumps and looks around in confusion as I slip out of the room undetected.

_So glad I took French in high-school._

I leave the hospital room for the first time since I arrived and start working my way towards the exit.

* * *

It took some time to find my way out of the strangely maze-like hospital layout.

It's like they're trying to keep patients in and everyone else out.

I take in a deep breath of the strangely salty air and finally start to relax, if only for a split second.

I look up and around the entryway of the four-story hospital, opposite it a park sits nearly abandoned except for one or two civilians. The entire area would have been a great scene of peace if it wasn't for the hundreds of skycars flying overhead at near the speed of sound.

I sigh and walk up to a nearby ARTS (Armali Rapid Transit System) podium and call a cab.

_I need to think..._

A rumbling emanated loudly from my gut.

_And a good meal._

I get into the skycar as it arrives and start looking through the surprisingly extensive on-board directory for good hotels/restaurants.

_The Derése, huh, good reviews, oh my goodness! It caters to all species!_

*Click* "Don't move."

I freeze up as the harsh double-toned voiced individual presses what I would assume was a gun up against the back of my hooded head.

_Oh crap._

"Set the destination for The Taseri Hotel, my employer wants to speak to you."

I scroll through the list franticly and click on Taseri before asking, "I'm guessing you were the ones who gave me this suit?"

"We'll discuss this later." I feel him holster his gun as the cab started taking off so I turn to find a Drell of all things!

_Oh, well, ok, they look really weird in person._

The mid-morning sun gleams through the side-view windows in such a way that it made his black inky eyes even more disturbing then his calm nature. He seems to stare at me for a moment before settling into the back seat comfortably. I turn back to face the front and go over my options and find few.

_Damn it! I can't find figure a way out of this! I've never been taken hostage before!_

The cab jerks to one side and lands in front of Taseri. "Get out and follow me."

_Now I'm surprisingly less worried about my chances. He's letting ME follow HIM, I have a choice! Or maybe I'm just curious about who's behind the metaphorical curtain._

I follow him through a plain-looking lobby and into an elevator. I choose the far corner and lean as nonchalantly as I could manage against the back wall while the Drell taps the display for the 14th floor.

_Damn, too high for free-fall. *sigh* What the hell am I doing? I just willingly go with a total stranger?! Granted I was held at gunpoint but still!_

"If you have any weapons remove them. The boss hates unnecessary violence."

I stare at him from behind my mask, "Do biotics count?"

He reals back in surprise, "You're a biotic? B-But I scanned you and didn't find any amp signature!"

_Should I?_

"I'm a natural biotic."

He blinks at me in shock. "Oh Kreck! I think I made a mistake!"

_Wait what?_

*bing* "Welcome to Taseri floor fourteen, relax and enjoy your stay!"

The perky synthesized voice frightened the sulking Drell, causing him to stare at the ceiling for a moment before stating, "Huh, I guess there's no point in-"

An explosion blew around us as the brakes on the elevator failed and it screamed against the metal wall in a fiery screech of metal on metal. The elevator stops abruptly, tossing us about inside the small metal box as the lights flickered.

"Oh..." I held my pounding head.

_Never do that, again._

Blearily I look at the Drell to see he's bleeding from a head wound and seems unconscious.

_God! What the hell happened?!_

A second explosion rocks the building. "Ohh... Wha- where am I?" The Drell asks in his dazed state.

I kneel down next to him and shake my head clear, "Y-your still in the elevator. An explosion-"

"NOOOOOOOOO!" I jump back as he clutches his head and screams in intense pain.

_What's happening?!_

The elevator drops and the extremely uncomfortaable feeling of free-falling sets in as the world starts to blur around me. Hundreds of whispers just barely out of ear-shot start to bleed into one extremely loud scream. I clench my teeth and hold my head at the intense pain until...

I jump awake with a start and look around fearfully to find that I was still back in the skycar at the hospital.

_I- what j-just happened?_

_**Hello Scorpio.**_

"Gah!"

**_Do not be alarmed, I am not here to harm you, just guide you._**

_My hands are shaking I'm so frightened._

"Wha- what's happening?!" I ask, desperate to make sense of the situation.

The voice creepily laughs inside my head, forcing me to cringe.

**_You have been given an opportunity._**

"Wha- what opportunity?"

I can FEEL it smile.

**_A second life. You have been chosen for a second life._**

I swallow and take a deep breath before closing my eyes and focusing every thought I had to block out the entity until the strange presence seems to weaken and fizzle away until it was gone.

_Good god... I'm really going insane aren't I?_

I set the course back to the restaurant and grab my seat as the skycar speeds off abruptly.

_God I am not going to like daily transit if it's always like this!_

My gloved fingers dug further into my seat as the skycar whips around another corner at top speed.

_Well, at least I haven't ACTUALLY crashed in one of these yet._

I look up as the skycar dove under another in cross traffic.

*bing* "You have arrived."

I blink and look out, the skyscrapers were flying by a lot more rapidly than usual, even with it's ridiculous speeds. My eyes widen as I see the roof of a Hotel rapidly approaching. "Ahhhhhhhhhh!"

*CRASH!*

* * *

A/N Sorry for the Cliffhanger.


	5. The Fish is Deadly

A/N This chapter is WEIRD. I'm just going to say that now. I have no idea why but it is. Well, at least to me...

I tried everything I could. I tried cutting it down, ripping pages of text off, deleting the word 'the', but for the life of me I could not shorten this chapter! I guess it's up to everyone reading it to see if it's good or not. I seriously hope it turned out at least 'good enough'. :/

Anyways, Read, Review, and Enjoy! :)

* * *

Atop a the tall and curved structure of a four star hotel a plume of black smoke rises from the recent crash site where even with all the smoke a figure is seen climbing out of the wreckage and stumbling a few feet away before collapsing completely.

_I can't_ *cough* _breath!_ *cough* *cough*

I stay low to the ground, trying to avoid the cloud of smoke enveloping the area while my adrenaline keeps me from passing out in exhaustion.

_What the hell just happened?_

*cough* "Activating interior CO2 scrubbers" I hear LIA state in her calm mono-toned voice as a slight hissing sound comes from my suit and I could finally take in a breath of fresh air.

_Oh, thank whatever gods that had a hand in the creation of this suit._

I roll over from my position on all fours and just lay there breathing in the scrubbed atmosphere in relief that I was alive.

_Holy shit..._

My heart rate slows and my vision starts to clear up again as my mind re-starts.

I sit up and wave my hand in front of my face to realize I was looking through the mask of the suit and a strange blue outline covered my hand as well as nearly everything around me except the burning corpse of the skycar in front of me.

I wait for some feeling to come back to my limbs before walking through the smoke and up to the front of the skycar, which was embedded into the side of a cargo transport which was mostly on fire.

I look back at the skycar in shock at all the damage that was done from one impact.

"LIA, how did I survive that crash?" I ask in astonishment as I try to inspect the mangled heap of metal and plastic that was a skycar.

...

"Scorpio the standard impact-reduction fields used as a replacement to just recently out-dated air-bags slowed your person down to the impact speed of .2 G force two seconds before impact, allowing you to remain unharmed." It states in a strangely comforting voice.

_Huh, ok now I'm a bit embarrassed for screaming like a little girl right before impact. How was I supposed to know that the skycar had anti-gravitational impact fields or whatever?_

I shake my head and promise myself to never to that again if I could avoid it before looking back up at the burning transport and calling up Lia again, "LIA, can you tell me how hot the interior of the transport shuttle is in front of me?" I ask as I realize there were unlabeled crates by the hundreds inside.

...

"Scorpio, I can detect temperatures exceeding 300 degrees Celsius inside the transport shuttle. WARNING! THIS SUIT'S MAXIMUM SAFETY HEAT CAPACITY IS NOT RATED FOR SUCH INTENSE HEAT EXPOSURE!" It shouts in my ear. I cringe at the sudden ringing in my ears and turn down the volume of her voice slightly.

_Ow... god and I though being in a regular car crash was dangerous!_

"Alright... thanks." I comment slightly agitated by the yelling.

I think it over, trying to decide what to do before I noticed a crate that wasn't even near the fire that had flung from the transport on impact. I quickly walk over and tell LIA to open up the cubic half-meter box.

_Ok, so what do we have here..._

The seal breaks and I carefully lift off the lid to find a lot of small-

*POP!* I jump nearly out of my skin and dive to the floor while covering my head at the extremely loud sound. I lift up my head, trying to get my already fraying nerves to calm down as I turn to see the fuel tank on the shuttle had ruptured, engulfing the rest of the transport and two others in the orange and purple flames.

_God... I just nearly died in a skycar crash and then again from an explosion... I am having a seriously shitty day, week, month, whatever!_

"Oh, man..." I let a shaky breath out and shake off another adrenaline rush before picking up the only crate left and stepping back from the flames and still sparking skycar to try and get over my total shock.

Looking at the contents of the crate I pick one of the small devices up and turn it over in my hand, it was completely black and unlabeled. I scan them with my omni-tool, "Lia, what are these?"

I let the VI process my request and three seconds later it responds, "Mk V experimental hammerhead round modifications fabricated by the _Blue Suns Mercenary Group_ for their _Commando_ units." I pick one up and look it over.

_It fascinates me how advanced this little device is compared to the tech I'm used to back in the twenty-first. It's smaller then a standard USB drive back home and it changes how a fraction of a shard of metal barely a millimeter thick is carved out of a block of metal!_

I let my curiosity take over and I look for a label on the crate. It was completely blank except for one barely noticeable label carved into the edge of the lid, a blue-

_Oh mother of god!_

I quickly drop the crate and throw the lid back on as I realize the shuttle I crashed into was delivering Blue-Sun's merchandise. I feel myself go into panic mode as I realize how much property damage I just did to a mercenary group.

_It's easily two, maybe three hundred thousand credits... oh son of the Goddess herself, WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!_

"Hey!" I whip my head up and notice people approaching from an open door not twenty meters away. I quickly scroll through my combat functions and cloak out of panic as I hear their foot-steps pick up. I grab the crate and run in the opposite direction of the engulfed transports as fast as I can. I look over my shoulder and find the men who were running towards the wreckage were in Blue Sun's armor.

_Oh crap!_

I pick up the pace and dive behind a parked skycar just as my cloak dies. My heart is beating out of my chest. It felt so strange being in regular danger. I'd been so used to dealing with unknowns that I almost forgot what it felt like to be threatened by actual living beings.

"HOLY MOTHER OF A COCK SHORE! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED OUT HERE?!" I look around the edge of my cover to find the commander of the Sun's waving his arms around widely while staring at the now seven burning transports in front of him. I hold back a snicker as he turns to the others to yell, "I LEAVE YOU GUYS ALONE FOR HALF AN HOUR AND THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS?!" The others look around uneasily from behind their helmets and a few back up in fear of what he could do.

The second in command by the stripes on his shoulder steps forward, "Sir! This happened not eight minutes ago! We were too busy trying to get everyone assembled to respond accordingly."

The Commander falls to his knees as another transport explodes, "That was the biggest shipment of mods we had! Those things are worth millions of credits on the Market! Oh god why? Why did this have to happen?!"

I look down at the unsealed crate in my hands and smile before re-sealing it.

_I think I like scavenging, just so long as I stay alive I'm good._

I look around the corner again to check if any of them moved before pulling my hood over my head and re-activating the cloak.

_Thank goodness my suit isn't easy to recognize and that it hides my face too._

The three other Suns look over the wreck then spread out.

_To look for me no doubt._

I look at the cover I was hiding behind and notice that it was a pretty decent skycar. I check if it's locked and curse that it was.

_Ok, so time to do some detective work. Umm... the skycar is unscratched, not damaged, high-end. So only someone who could afford it could use it._

I look out of cover with my cloak still active and notice something gleaming from the commander's belt as her weeps on his knees. I smile as I recognize an Identification key. I hide behind my cover as my cloak wears off and take a deep breath while thinking over what I was about to do. It had to be perfect, no screw-ups, no do-overs, if I fuck up I'm dead.

_This is nerve-wracking!_

I peek out of cover when I hear some foot steps and quickly duck as I notice one of the three troopers walking over.

_Ok, ok don't panic! Just remember a move you learned from Victoria._

I frown in focus and ready myself in a crouched position. The trooper walks around the front of the skycar and turns his back on me to look out at the city.

_Perfect._

I creep up behind him silently and quickly grab him by the jaw and yank his head to the left with both hands, turning him just enough for me to punch him in the head as hard as I can. He surprisingly drops to the ground like a rock, unconscious according to my HUD.

_Ok, that was awesome!_

I carefully drag him into cover and search his armor pockets for anything of use. After taking his cheep-looking rifle, I find a few personal Items I don't take and after a scan of his omni-tool I growl at his habit of locking his tool securely.

"LIA how can I break into this guy's omni-tool?" I ask in a whisper.

...

"Scorpio, your Terra 7 omni-tool has a built in decryption program, would you like to activate it?"

I smile at my luck, "Yes LIA." The purple display grew on my left arm into a screen filled with boxes of text and an image of the needed text sample to the side.

_Ok, well this is familiar._

I hit the start button and the boxes of text start to move up the display. I tap the needed box when I see it and tap the next and the next as they appear in my line of sight. Eight boxes later the screen flashes green and the Blue-Sun's omni-tool flashes into existence, but the display was on my tool. I let a triumphant grin spread across my face as I find 6000 credits stored in three separate accounts in his personal file.

_Oh, well I guess that's lucky, and it took less then half a minute too! I'm going to really enjoy doing this!_

I transfer the credits into my own account and delete both our transaction histories like I learned from stories Victoria used to tell me about electronic theft.

I close down everything after smiling at the large sum of creds in my own account. Refocusing on my task I look around the corner and realize the other two Sun's were starting to notice their buddy wasn't responding to their calls.

I speed up my task and cloak while silently dashing forward out of cover and towards the commander. I slow down and crouch as I stop a meter behind him. I watch him for a bit as he sniffles and cries his eyes out and almost feel a pang of guilt before I remind myself that my life was in danger and swipe the ID card from his belt, along with his strange-looking pistol for good measure.

He doesn't even notice I've been there by the time I'm back at the shuttle and unlocking the systems using his ID card. I throw my goodies in the back and jump into the driver seat. I take the weird flight controls and start it up just as the Suns look my direction at the noise. Looking out the windows I see them raise their rifles.

_Oh crap!_

"LIA get me out of here!" I shout since I have absolutely no idea how to drive/fly a skycar.

"At once." She responds. The controls beep and acknowledge the user swap before the skycar lifts off the ground and speeds off.

"Hey! That's my fucking shuttle! Shoot it down before it gets away!" I hear the commander shout in exasperation.

I hear bullets ping off the armored plating for a second and duck in an attempt to avoid getting hit, they stop after a second and I sigh in absolute relief that I got out of there alive. I lean back in the comfortable leather driver's seat and shiver from how exciting it all was.

_Ok, so I just got in a skycar crash, stole merchandise from the Blue Suns, and somehow lived past the escape attempt! I feel good, great even!_

Remembering the crate of mods I had in the back I redirect the skycar to the markets.

_Maybe I could sell these to those nice Asari that ran _Circuits and More_ or trade them to the people at _The Chained Krogan.

* * *

My stolen skycar sharply dives down and lands at the curb just outside Circuits and More. I step out with my crate of mods and take two steps forward before noticing something covering the front door.

_What the hell?_

I turn around and place the crate back into the skycar before locking it and walking up to the door to look inside. As I open the door I notice the pungent smell of rotting meat and cover my face in an attempt to escape it. The lights were flickering and I can see a figure in the darkness.

_What-?_

I abruptly stop as my eyes catch the sight of three bodies laying on the floor. I recognize all three of them. The two Asari that ran the store were near the counter, gunshots to the head. The last was the crazy Salarian from before, gunshot to the head as well, but it was suicide as his left hand held the still armed pistol.

_Oh my..._

I stand there, frozen in place, trying to rationalize it.

_I know I can't but it still feels better to try._

My mind focuses and something crosses my mind as I stare at the bodies.

_I wonder if they have anything I could take._

Ignoring the gruesome scene I carefully slip the store's account card from the counter and login as the supervisor.

_Ok, now what's here..._

I find the accounts already whipped and decide to look around the back for anything of use.

After a few minutes of looting I find some high-level omni-tools and two similar pistols to the one I grabbed off the Blue-Sun's commander.

_Huh, so he might have bought it from here, interesting. A bit more interesting then the double homicide/suicide out in the main room._

I walk around the pools of purple and green blood, careful to not disturb the crime scene, and walk out into the oblivious and busy streets.

_These people don't know what type of shit just went down in there._

I unlock the skycar, throw the tech into the back and type in The Chained Krogan as my destination while sending an anonymous message to the Armali Police Center detailing the incident.

_Better the officers clean that up before someone disturbs the scene while looting the store. Not that I'm not sorry they died, but it won't do myself or anyone any good if I let some criminals take the good stuff before I have a crack at it._

I sigh and lean back into my seat.

_I'm a terrible person._

The skycar lands just as quickly as before and I look up as I get out to be shocked by how run-down The Chained Krogan was. The sign was hanging side-ways, windows broken, multiple bullet holes in the control panel for the door which was wide open.

_Damn, this place looks like a war zone._

I grab my pile of tech and walk inside cautiously, the interior was shockingly pristine! Not one bullet hole, not one scorch mark, not even one spot on the white surface of the counter.

_Wow... what a difference._

"Welcome to The Chained Krogan! How may I serve you?" A red-skinned Salarian states happily from behind the counter.

I let myself internally scream at how freaky he looks before swallowing and saying, "I was going to sell these items to you today." I wave my hand to the pile of goodies on the counter and the Salarian nods once before grabbing the rifle and inspecting it.

He bounces the rifle in his hands for a moment before setting it on the counter to the of the register, "100 credits." I nod and he passes a chit over to me while putting the rifle under the counter.

"So, you like doing this item by item?" I ask conversationally.

He nods while picking up one of the pistols, "Yes, it allows the customer to realize that each individual item might be worth more or less due to their condition as well as keeps con-artists at bay from the enhanced screening." He cocks the pistol back and blinks at the interior before muttering, "Interesting..." He calls up a green omni-tool display and types something in before smiling and setting it down to the right, "Enhanced modifications, 1500 credits." He looks at the other two pistols and says, "And only 800 for both of the other two."

I nod, "That's reasonable."

He smiles and stores them under the counter like before.

He takes twenty minutes going over the omni-tools before he looks up and says, "15000 credits for all of them." I agree happily and he's finally down to the crate of mods.

He cracks the seal and puts the lid off to the side. "I found this crate outside a transport shuttle and thought they could be worth something." I state as he inspects one of the mods using his omni-tool.

The tool beeps and his eyes widen in shock, "By the old gods! These are top-tier!" He exclaims while carefully setting the mod down on the counter before looking directly at me. "I have a buyer of high-end mods on the Citadel that could find a buyer for these in about a week, but I can forward you all the credits now if you wish." He starts hopping slightly in place with a huge grin on his thin lips.

I shrug and say, "Ok, um sure? I guess that's fine."

He then proceeds to take out and scan all twenty four mods and make sure they weren't fakes, which takes about ten minutes.

I wander around the shop during that short time and notice a lot of high-tech security around the place, sensory devices, cameras, the works.

_The guy's paranoid I'll give him that. Ooooh what's that!_

I marvel at a pristine and sleek Sniper Rifle held in a security case on one of the back walls and look at the specs cautiously. "The Reaper IV, designed by Elkoss Combined, 1.2 shots before overheating, maximum range of 140 meters. Nice." I inspect the deep red and white design and smile at the extreme similarities it held with the ones from ME1.

"I see you have found our top-line model for the year!" I look to my right and nearly scream in shock from how close the Salarian was. He reaches up and opens the case before taking the rifle out and starting it up. It unfolds with a hiss and click dramatically.

"I'll take it!" I state happily without looking at the price tag.

_No reason to question spending habits yet._

"Excellent! It comes with a complimentary Edge III Pistol when purchased using store credit." He states as we walk back to the front and he rings it up.

I notice the mods were gone and so was the crate, "How much were those mods worth?" I ask curiously.

He stops typing and looks directly at me, "They were 6000 credits a piece on market, off market they are worth 5500 credits. Due to security risks with the Blue-Suns I deducted 1500 per unit and 100 for a delayed buy back on my part so I owe you a total of 93600 credits, 102960 credits if you want in-store credit." He smiles and my jaw drops.

...

_Oh god! That was just ONE crate?! I destroyed like twenty of them from the one transport alone!_

I run a rough estimate of the credits in my head...

_OH MY GOD! 23,040,000 CREDITS! I AM FUCKED! OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD!_

I struggle to keep myself calm on the exterior as internally I'm having three heart attacks, "How much is the Sniper Rifle worth?" I ask without blowing my proverbial top.

_I'm screwed if they find out it was me... no wonder the commander was crying his eyes out!_

"The Reaper IV Sniper Rifle sells for 60000 credits." His smile falters for a split second.

I watch him for a moment, trying to see what he was nervous about.

_Well, it IS for both weapons._

I frown and speak with finality, "Ok, half of it is going to be store credit and I'm going to walk away with the Reaper IV and Edge III with a discount of 15000 credits due to how many trade-ins I sold to you." Surprisingly he just nods enthusiastically and quickly hands me the credit chit and two weapons cases.

He smiles as I stare at him in shock, "Have a wonderful day!" He calls to me as I leave through the open front door.

_What a strange encounter._

I stop my pace as I notice officers around the stolen skycar and quickly divert my path towards an ARTS podium.

_That commander must have called it in stolen, or someone saw it at _Circuits and More_ when I left._

A plain-looking skycar-cab lands in front of me and I nervously get inside, remembering what happened last time I used Rapid Transit as I toss the two cases into the back seats.

_I seriously hope this thing doesn't fail like that other one._

I sit back in the driver seat and look through the directory.

_Lets see... apartments, apartments... ah! Tower's Lights! It looks like it's located right between the markets and AAH, perfect location._

Setting the destination I suddenly feel like I was going to pass out as the cab speeds off in beyond-safe speeds. My eye-lids droop and I loose all feeling in my body...

* * *

_**You cannot escape me... You will die... The darkness will destroy you...**_ I jump awake from the nightmare and grip my newly acquired pistol case before relaxing and realizing I was at my destination.

_I really need-_

I deeply sigh as I rub my tired eyes.

_-to meditate on this._

I step out of the cab and shake my head clear before fixing my hood. I sigh tiredly and make a mental note to learn more about my biotics before grabbing the two weapons cases and approaching the futuristic-looking apartment building.

The tile entryway was lit up by the sign that hung overhead declaring that the apartment had vacancy. The interior decor mirrored the flowing ocean cycles that all Asarian architecture seemed to adopt. My normally silent steps echo annoyingly as I walk through the main lobby and up to the check-in desk where an Asari head-seep in her omni-tool sat.

_Young, impressionable, able to easily offen- Ok, I really need to stop doing that._

"Hi? I would like a room?" I ask loudly enough to catch her attention and a Turian's that was sitting off to the side reading a magazine.

The Asari looks up once then quickly back to her omni-tool but pauses and looks back up and gawks at me with wide eyes.

_Um... what's going on?_

She continues to stare at me in some sort of shock before I sigh and pull back my hood and close my eyes to take off the mask. "De-pressurizing suit." Lia comments in my ear as I feel the mask fall back into the collar of the suit. I open my eyes.

"Oh Goddess, you nearly scared be half to death in that suit!" She exclaims in relief before staring into my deep brown eyes strangely. I frown slightly as I see something familiar in her own that I've only seen in one other since I arrived in this universe...

Understanding.

"You wanted a ground floor room at the least amount of cost at the most strategic position." She states without tearing her eyes away from mine.

"Yeah." I respond calmly.

She smiles ever-so-slightly before accessing my omni-tool and taking the required 322 credits a night fee that I remember seeing outside for some reason, all the while never breaking eye contact. A sharp buzzing starts to catch my attention in the back of my head and I can feel my left hand start to twitch and shake so I clench it into a fist.

_There's a life beyond that of our own that sees us all Human. Take grasp of it and make sure you never let go._ She blinks and I take in a sharp intake of air before catching my breath and immediately looking to my left to find the Turian from before gone and so was the magazine.

I stop breathing and suddenly my mind focuses onto my memory of the magazine itself.

**_You need to know..._**

_The blue edges, picture of an Asari wielding her biotics on the front, one word on the top... Redemption._

I blink and my eyes widen since I'm now typing in the entry code to unlock the door to my apartment. The door accepts my code and it opens as the word slips my mind and I forget what happened between the main lobby and this door to my new apartment. I look down the hall and see a cloaked figure but it disappears when I try and focus on it.

_What just happened?_

I shake my head clear and walk into the apartment and lock the door behind me, "LIA, activate the lights."

_I have no idea why I just said that._

Surprisingly the lights activate and I'm looking at a relatively nice apartment. Which for some reason I remember that it rents for 322 credits a night or 10000 a month, but that fee covers everything from utilities to maintenance if I require it. As well as replacement of any furniture/appliances for no charge to the owner.

_Why do I know that?_

I set the weapon's cases onto a couch of some kind and answer my own question.

_Because I live here now._

The living room where I stand now is relatively small and had plain metallic gray walls with dark gray carpeting. I notice a coffee table of some sort in the center of the room and a really dis-proportioned chair I assume is for Turians on the opposite side of the couch. Directly across from the front door is where the kitchen sits with a strange Island-wall separating it from the living room, but not completely.

I walk over and look around to find everything standard and furnished in the Kitchen as well.

_Hmm... why does that surprise me?_

I shake my head and turn around to exit the kitchen and turn right to open the slide-door for the bathroom. Inside the very cramped space held a toilet, a sink with a mirror above it, and a small walk-in shower. Both the kitchen and the bathroom have tiled floors.

I take another look around the spacious (to my standards) apartment and sigh in contentment that I finally had moved out of my parents house.

_Not the way I wanted to move out but you take what you can get. At least this place is bigger then my room back home, I'd have been disappointed if it was smaller. If it could even get any smaller than 32 square meters of space._

I look around the apartment again before moving my weapons cases to the coffee table and sitting on the couch.

_Huh, this living room is larger then my entire living space back home alone._

I sit back and sigh in relief at finally getting to lay back and relax properly for the first time in-

My head jerks up and I'm alert once again.

_Oh wow, it's been nine days including today since I was dropping into this universe and I still don't have a job. Well... I have an apartment. That's something I guess, better then some other fiction writers I've read._

I let myself relax slightly and just take a moment to collect my thoughts.

_Ok, I'm no-longer broke with 112400 credits in my account. I have an apartment, biotics-_

I blink and think over that last part for a second.

_Holy crap! I'm a biotic!_

...

_I don't know how to think about that, I mean it's nice I guess? I'm more worried taht I might accidentally kill someone bioticly when I'm under deres._

Thinking about how I could try and get better control of my biotics I remember how Asari usually bioticly meditated to gain better control of their powers before and in-between combat. Which reminded me about how I was supposed to contact Liara as soon as I got an omni-tool.

_Damn it!_

Thinking back to the first day I was in this universe I skip over all the freaking out I did, and I did a lot, to find Liara's contact number and type it in on my omni-tool before the memory ended. Thinking about what to say I decide not to call her, but send her a message instead.

_Dear Liara,_

And my mind draws a blank.

...

I just start typing.

_Dear Liara,_

_Our initial encounter was not satisfactory to what I have come to understand as a beginning to our future friendship and I would enjoy meeting up with you if time permits, for tea or just lunch._

_Sincerely, _

_Scorpio_

I stare at the message for the longest time before shaking my head and hitting send just to get it out of my to-do list.

_*sigh* Well now that that's done maybe I can finally sate my appetite for knowledge._

Activating my omni-tool I access the Extranet connection that came with the apartment and search for 'ways to bioticly meditate'...

* * *

After hours of searching and searching the terribly vast Extranet for anything and everything having to do with biotics, esspecially Natural Biotics, I finally find a step-by-step instruction manual for biotic meditation off of AAH's website no less.

So now while I wait for a response from Liara, I read up on how to bioticly meditate and it's absolutely fascinating! It turns out there's a universal energy that biotics are sensitive to, which I figured out is called Dark Energy, and when we meditate before battle we're tapping that universal energy to fuel our biotics, allowing us to build and grow in strength and power.

_Huh, it's kind of like being a mage in Dragon Age Origins. Man if I meet Admiral Xen I will freak out! I loved how cold and calculating Morrigan was in DAO._

...

_That was random._

It takes me a while, and a lot of concentration, but I manage a spot of burning biotic energy while meditating on the couch the apartment came with.

_I still can't believe I'm a biotic! A human trans-dimensional natural biotic! It's insane! Impossible! Improbable, but it happened and I'm running with it... and now I feel a bit like Mordin. Seriously what is with all these random thoughts lately?!_

I let the glowing spot of energy die and take a moment to catch my breath.

_As I suspected meditating takes a lot out of you, just like using your biotics._

I look down at the time on my omni-tool and see it's almost 1400 so I decide to take a shower, the first real shower I've taken in over eight days in this universe. While taking my armor off and setting it aside in the small bathroom I notice my stubble had grown into a thin beard over the short time I was incapacitated.

_Ok, shower, shave, then a good night's rest hopefully._

I sigh contentedly as I step under the cool and refreshing water, my mind to wander back to my past. I remember the time the power went out during an ice storm to the entire city and because of that the water line froze over and the city couldn't fix it because the ground was frozen so everyone in the neighborhood had to shower outside for a week! I smile at the fond memory of standing on the deck while my mother dumped a bucket of water over my head.

_Haha! That was absolute hell. It's considered child abuse these days but it all turned out well for everyone back then so I'm not complaining. Expecially since I literally couldn't do anything about it if I tried. I'm not about to waste my time trying to talk to a social worker from across dimensions just to right a wrong that was done twelve years ago._

After the shower I end up wearing my under-suit since I haven't bought any clothes yet as I shave the old-fashioned way, with my dagger and a sink full of water.

Half-way through the delicate process of cutting hair off my face with a serrated knife I end up reminiscing on my own universe. The color of the leaves in Autumn, harsh Winters that bury everything in a meter of snow, beautiful and wet Springs that make way for a burning-hot Summer filled with insects and laughter...

I stop scrubbing my armor and blink.

_Which reminded me of Fable 2_

*sigh* I finish up cleaning my newly shaved face and smile that I looked like me again. I take some time to rinse off my armor since it was pretty much covered in a harsh smoky odor that I can't stand. Finishing that I catch my own eye in the mirror and I can see my own tired eyes for the first time since arriving here.

_I know I can never go back, nothing was left of that life now. My parents always said I adapted quickly, but this is just..._

I shake my head and sit down atop the lid of the toilet.

_Everything is different. The Reapers exist, Shepard exists, and the galaxy is really going down in flames..._

The images of what is to come flash into my vision, Saren, Sovereign, the Citadel, The Reapers, Shepard's death...

_I have to stop that when it happens. He/She doesn't deserve suffocating to death. I'll need to make a mental check list for what I should and shouldn't change later..._

The Reapers...

I cringe as I remember the reanimated flesh and corpses used to create foot-soldiers.

_I never thought about it before now but I wonder if the people who were indoctrinated by the Reapers know they became husks, cannibals, etc._

A shiver runs down my spine at the thought.

_I really don't want to see those things in person._

I hang my armor out to dry over the slide door of the shower and think about all the stories I've read and how everyone who was dropped into the MEU had a purpose.

_Ok, perhaps I need to do something? Why was I sent here? Am I supposed to end the war or something? Hmm... I don't want to think about it too much, it won't help my sanity. What should I do then? I guess I could train myself for joining Shepard? Yeah, it may be cliché, but I need a goal. It's the only way I'll make sure I stay sane and survive for... Holy crap... It's 2171! I'm 12 years prior to Mass Effect 1!_

I walk out of the bathroom and sat down on the couch with my new weapons cases and went to work an memorizing their construction and software.

_It's not so bad being here I guess. It's just new, like when I went to college._

Memories of the first day I stepped foot on campus assault my already blurring vision...

_I have got to stop walking into these things..._

* * *

I watch as I see a two year younger version of myself takes a deep breath and a step towards the community college I had joined. I paid the tuition with the money I made during my summer job, it was the best I could afford. I see myself open the doors and walk into the building before my vision blurred again...

* * *

Shaking my head to clear out the old memories I continue on with the weapons maintenance when something crosses my mind.

_I have to be careful if I don't want to get attacked for just existing. I'll need to know how to use my weapons, basic hand-to-hand combat experience isn't going to cut it, I'll look up where I could find a shooting range tomorrow. I need a day of rest._

I felt my heart ache at the thought of never going back home as I went over how to disassemble my pistol and sniper rifle again.

_This is my new life..._

I stand and set my completed weapons down on the coffee table at my feet and walk back into the bathroom. I carefully put on the now dry armor and look into the mirror before I wipe away a tear I hadn't noticed had fallen and cover my head with the thin hood. "This is my new life, no sense in dwelling on the past." I told myself for the second time that afternoon. I stare at the person in the mirror and nearly cry at how strong he looks.

_I'm not strong, I'm not brave, how am I going to save the galaxy? How CAN I save the galaxy?_

I run a hand down my face and pull up my mask. I let the HUD display connect and synchronize correctly before opening my eyes.

_This is who I am now, a dark shadow fighting in a city of aliens._

I open my omni-tool and start checking the diagnostics of my armor as I walk back to the couch and sigh as I sit down.

_I'll need to make them proud. Everyone from this universe probably depends on me becoming a big hero, but all I want is to live in peace, away from the chaos. I know it's a pipe dream but its all I can hope for now. The Reapers will come, and I have to be ready when they arrive._

Sheathing my dagger into its new housing I check my omni-tool for messages.

One from Liara, the Matriarch, Officer Rila...

"What the hell?" I whisper out load while opening the last message.

_From: Officer Rila_  
_To: User: AS13742_  
_Subject: Smugglers_

_Well I'll be damned, you actually do have a conscious! Thanks for the info, really needed a break on that smuggling trade. Wondering if we could come to some arrangement, you know... credits for info type of thing? Got to get back to work, I hate paperwork a lot! Call me up when you have time, well see how it goes!_  
_~R _

_(Enclosed is an authorized transfer of 100 credits into an account of your choosing)_

...

_What is she talking about? I never sent her any message. The only thing I did was call in that double homicide-suicide and-_

...

_Oh! Ok, now I see it. So that pistol WAS bought at that store! And I just realized that Circuits and More was probably a front for the Blue-Sun's smuggling operations. Huh... I guess this could work, earning a few extra credits on the side should be interesting, and selling some of the mods could make me rich! Wait... how did she know who sent the message? Is she spying on me?_

I shake my head at the thought and composed a reply message while using some tricks I learned off the Extranet to block my ID just in-case.

_Sender: Unknown_  
_Receiver: Officer Rila_  
_Subject: Trading_

_Rila, I'm glad the info helped, truth be told I actually crashed a taxi onto a hotel and just happened to crack open a cargo transport filled to the brim with Black-market mods on impact. Pure luck! Anyways, I'll be happy to forward some info as I get it, as long as you do the same, nothing illegal just reports on other potential targets (if you know what I mean). Anything helps, thanks again for saving my life back there._  
_~S _

_(Image attached: Austrailian-Scorpion-2013)_

And send, now for the Matriarch's.

_From: Matriarch Lidanya-Destiny Ascension_  
_To: Scorpio (Encryption broken temporarily by unknown user)_  
_Subject: Enrollment_

_Hello again Scorpio, I would like to once again thank you for saving my daughter, as per your request you have been enrolled into the Armali Academy for the Huntress and will begin class one week from today with Matriarch Aethyta as your personal Instructor. _

_We have altered your studies to accommodate a shorter lifespan. Because of this, you will be required to study fifteen years worth of material in five. The strenuous pacing may be extremely difficult for you. _

_After your final test on the fifth anniversary of your enrollment, you will graduate with your success and possibly die with your failure. Beyond Graduation you may choose to become a true Huntress, (which requires another three decades of study) or simply use your now extensive knowledge to live out your life how you see fit. Due to financial reasons, only the first year of classes are free. You will be required to pay the enrollment fee of 830,000 credits to continue for the last four years. _

_I understand how stressful this may seem, though as the first non-Asari to enroll in the history of the Academy you will be used as an outline for future inductees. I hope you will still consider studying at AAH and if not, then contact me directly and we will discuss what other things I could provide in the absence of your enrollment. May the Goddess go with you Scorpio._  
_~Lidanya_

"What... The... Crud! Oh my god!" I yell rather loudly as I quickly re-read the message.

_Yep, I inadvertently saved the daughter of the Commander of the Destiny Ascension AND in turn am now going to be personally taught by Liara's father in the way of the Huntress. Booooyahhh! How's that reality! Whoa! Holy hell that's just awesome, beyond awesome! It's EPIC! Although the credits concern me greatly, scavenging together 830,000 credits within a year is just insane, I think I can manage it. All I need to do is pull off one huge heist- on second thought maybe I should just get a job and avoid becoming the first Archangel to die on Thessia. I'm absolutely sure they're doing this in an attempt in forcing me to leave, but I'm not, I'll stay and fight for that degree! I am the only natural Human Biotic in existence according to the Extranet and I require massive training so I can hone my powers. I WILL NOT LEAVE AND DOOM THE GALAXY!_

"Ok ok calm down, you still need to do things today. No need to work yourself up over something you can't change." I told myself as I smile brightly at the new information about my future and took several deep breaths to calm the resulting burst of adrenaline.

_I guess I'm going to have a lot of work to do._

Remembering Liara's message I open it and frown.

_This thing is in... Prothean?_

Checking the lettering against what I knew I sigh.

_Yep that's Prothean, that girl is too smart for her own good._

* * *

The bright Thessian sun shines it's rays of existence and life through the passing skyscrapers and transports and into the front view window of the skycar-cab I hacked into and managed to get moving much more slowly towards my destination.

"God when is that sun going to quit!" I state angrily as I lower the brightness settings on my HUD again.

Normally I enjoyed the sunsets of the planets I'm on but today I just need a break. What with the explosions, dead bodies, and god forsaken psycotic breaks I keep having.

I sigh as the skycar turns a corner and out of the harsh red rays of the slow sunset.

_It took a while, but I managed to decrypt the message Liara sent me. It essentially said to meet her for dinner at her house up in the rich districts. I didn't think she would ask me so directly._

My hacked cab continued to speed off towards the per-programed address. I searched the Extranet for ways to alter the safety features of skycars and ended up hacking the cab in frustration at how insane the VI drives.

The cab flew at a moderate speed clear of a near-impact site near the markets and turned towards the mountains, and towards Benesia's estate. I lean forward to spot the white swoop of the mansion and notice that it was indeed built into the mountain side like Liara's message said, and to add to it's beauty it was lit up by fiery reds and oranges the encroaching sunset threw across the sky. It is magnificent.

_If I remember correctly Liara acted really strange the last time I saw her. Probably from having to treat my leg injury._

Flexing the now completely healed leg, I smile at the wonders of modern medicine.

_It didn't even scar._

The cab shifts to the left and slowly descends onto a landing platform outside a massive gate. Opening my omni-tool, I check Liara's message for the address and cross reference it with the cab's to confirm that I was indeed at the right location.

_The hour and a half... flight, wasn't as comfortable as you'd expect from advanced technology. It doesn't even have seat belts! Which I can understand since it has mass-reduction technology, but still!_

I step out of the glorified metal death-trap and am immediately greeted by an attendant typing away at her omni-tool. She takes one look at me standing in front of her in my full set of armor and calls security.

_Oh for the love of..._

"I'm here to meet with Liara? I'm Scorpio!" I shout as I the highly trained guards surround me as I stand in the center of the slate landing pad.

_It's impolite to hurt your host's guards after all... and I definitely know I can't take-_

I look around and count them.

_Yep I'm not going to do anything but what they say, I see twenty of them, 19.991 more then I can handle._

I shift nervously as the captain of the guard team of Huntresses walks forward and scans my omni-tool. She then immediately calls off her forces with a wave of her hand and turns to speak to me, "Sorry about that, I'm Captain Selsh, leader of Matriarch Benesia's security forces. Please enjoy your stay, but I would warn you against threatening anyone in this place. It could be... unhealthy." I ignore her prideful flaring of biotics and nod a thank you to her before walking through the now opening gates.

_I already knew she wouldn't try anything so why with the show?_

I sigh and close my eyes to just concentrate on the world around me.

_Ever since I woke up from that strange coma, I noticed that I could... feel things differently, like they held energy, everything even rocks and plants hold small bits of energy. I suspect this is what biotics feel all the time._

I look around and try to hold my focus a little bit longer before I suddenly have to stop due to how tiring it is, like usual.

_I've always been sensitive to, well, everything. So maybe this is over-sensitivity to the presence of Dark Energy in the environment? I don't know. Seems correct. The strange thing about it is that even when I close my eyes, I can see everything if I concentrate hard enough, it's just really grainy like it is now._

_Call me insane, but I think this resembles something I've read about in my searches for meditation guidelines. I think the website I was on said something about the stronger-willed Asari matriarchs using the natural energies of the universe to give them... Biotic Vision? Yes that's what it said._

_It's all really interesting, apparently since Dark Energy affects everything it touches, the Matriarchs have learned and refined different passive biotic abilities to assist them in combat. In theory only Natural Biotics are able to learn these abilities, they say that the biotic amps, that most Asari use, simply taps their own maximum potential and not the universe's. So the only way to learn how to tap into the underlining energies of the universe was to naturally develop your biotics without an amp. Making it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for non-Asari to properly use them with ease. The naturally strong biotics, such as the some if not most Asari, could, with decades of work and meditation hone their biotic abilities without the need of an amp. This is, as you'd expect, quite unpopular with the maidens who's rebellious nature cause them to just get outfitted with an amp so they can lower the required training down to two or three years._

_Foolish since the power and control of completely Natural Asari Biotic's far-surpasses that of any amped ones by nearly twenty times!_

_If I read up on it correctly, it explained how the amps only worked as an On or Off system where you can't do precise motor controls with your biotics, such as pulling a glass of water towards you, without extreme care. Where as in a natural biotic, they could effortlessly reach for and grab the glass bioticly without any trouble what-so-ever due to their extensive training._

_Seems like a no-brainer for me. Amps suck, I'm so glad I'm going to train to not need one. Hard-wiring anything into your brain-stem is never a good idea in my books. Also, you can't dampen a natural biotic; they don't have amps so there isn't anything you can hack into to stop their biotics from building. Just another reason I'm going to do it the hard way._

"Hello sir, welcome to Matriarch Benesia's Monastery." I stop in my tracks and blink. Looking behind me I notice I'd walked a good hundred yards to the front door without even thinking.

_Huh, well at least I got a moment of peace with my thoughts. Didn't even think I was moving._

Turning back to the energetic Maiden that greeted me, I smile warmly and say as politely as I can, "Hello young one, it is very good to meet you."

She frowns at the _young one_ part, "Sir, I'm two hundred and thirty eight years old, I am not young." she states in aggravation.

_Of course, your about 34 in human standards, that's still young with an adjusted 150yr lifespan on humanity._

I look her up and down carefully and notice her posture was incorrect, her mannerisms were sloppy, and overall she was the worst educated Asari I'd seen since arriving here from my own universe.

_And that's saying something._

"No, but even though I'm only nineteen years old, I can sense your lack of experience." I look up and into her increasingly furious glare without blinking, "You may be 238yrs old, but the amount of life you've truly lived is only around 119, which in conversion to human years is only 17. Therefore I'm scientifically two years older than you in human terms, and 14yrs older in Asari. Live your life to the fullest child, you only have one, and sadly your behind." Her jaw drops and she stutters out that she didn't need to listen to me and how wrong I was. Before remembering where she was and sucking in her pride to guide me inside.

_A bit rude, but I know how to motivate people. Saying to a 238yr old Asari that you, a nineteen year old human, have done more with your life then she has really opens their eyes, and pisses a lot of people off but hey, what can you do._

She seems agitated but surprisingly doesn't show it as she curtly directs me through the curving and raising halls and passages of statues, wavy architecture and cooling colors that seemed to warm as the sun's setting light glowed through the windows and sprinkled heat across the entire monastery.

_So beautiful..._

I have to resist the urge to snap hundreds of photos with my omni-tool as the young maiden directs me into the dining room. I marvel at the massive room, the extremely high ceiling and streaming braces inter-locking with the windows to create a feeling of awe and wonder. Craning my head straight up I realize I was gawking and thank the Goddess for my suit's face mask.

_Definitely a plus to wearing a full-body suit, hiding your ridiculously stupid and mortifying expressions from the "elite" of the galaxy._

I ignore my furious blush and look down the huge table to notice twelve highly posh and decedent dishes surrounded by eight Asari Disciples, Shiala included, Liara, and last but definitely not least, none other than Matriarch Benesia, adorned in her favorite colored dress, yellow.

The Asari attendant that I pissed off walks forward and bows beside Benesia before speaking, "Mistress? Mr. Scorpio has arrived."

"I think I can introduce myself child." I said curtly, obviously noticing how much the attendant tried to embarrass me.

Everyone turns to look at me and all of a sudden I'm the center of attention.

_Oh, well here it goes. I hate first impressions. I think I remember the Asari Matriarchal greeting from a fanfict I read before dying and waking up here._

Pulling down my hood and mask, I made eye-contact with Benesia after she stands to address me personally. I see the near melenia of experience in her eyes as they seem to penetrate into my very soul.

I involuntarily swallow before bringing my right middle finger and pointer-finger over my heart, then to my lips, and lastly I wait a second before touching those two fingers to my forehead and bowing slightly as I swung my right hand low to finish the greeting. I stay in that extremely uncomfortable position while speaking, "Greetings Matriarch Benesia. I am humbled at being welcomed into such a prestigious establishment."

_My legs are going to collapse..._

I notice her hand gesture that let me stand and I quickly do so and hold my hands behind my back in respect as my eyes re-established contact with hers.

Everyone in the room, except the maiden guide, seems to gawk in surprise and amusement at my greeting. "We welcome you as well, Scorpio. Liara has mentioned you and your interest in her."

_Oh great, this is the 'meeting the family for approval' part of the evening._

I nod respectfully, "Yes, as she has no doubt told you, we met during an... incident about a week ago. She helped me out of it and I offered her compensation for her services in the form of a friendly cup of tea or coffee." I keep my composure and display a sense of confidence and control.

_At least I hope I'm displaying that._

She directs me to sit next to Liara at the table with a simple wave of the hand. I accept it and calmly walk over to the embroidered seat and sit.

"We, are about to say the opening prayer, would you give us the honor." Shiala says in her impossible to mistake separated vocal stature from across the dinning table.

_Really? I suppose they're trying to make me stumble._

"Of course." I fold my hands in front of me in Thane's praying position and take a deep breath to try and calm my still fraying nerves.

_Ok, I seriously hope I don't botch this._

I let my mind wander back to something I remembered from my studies on Asarian culture from back in my own universe, "My the Goddess protect us in our best of moments and darkest hours as we now feast thankfully on all she has given us." I say in the most commanding voice I can work up in a moments notice. I end up sounding like Shiala.

_Not bad, a bit short though._

I get a few nods of approval from the disciples. "Thank you Scorpio." Shiala says before everyone begins to eat their dishes at their own pace. I look around the table and try to locate something familiar before I remember I wasn't on Earth anymore.

_I haven't eaten Asarian dishes before. Maybe this is a good time ti try some out?_

I shrug and search the array of dishes for anything appetizing. I find a strangely blood-red salmon-looking fish with some blue sauce on the side. Reaching over I grab the dish and a utensil I believe is a fork.

_Doesn't look too bad._

I inspect the small serving cautiously before dipping the chunk of meat into the sauce and popping it into my mouth.

"Scorpio!" Shiala shouts as she practically jumps out of her seat. She stares at me as I chew.

_Uhh... did I miss something?_

I swallow the surprisingly spicy fish.

"How do you feel?" Shiala asks with a type of motherly concern I can only compare to, well, motherly concern.

"Fine, I guess. Why?" I ask back while watching her shocked reaction closely.

She blinks twice and stares at me incredulously, "That dish is among the most dangerous on the planet. The fish is toxic if it isn't ingested with the right amount of sauce, which is an anti-toxin of sorts." She states with even more concern then before.

My utensil drops onto the plate with a clang.

_What... The... Fuck..._

"So..." I look down at my plate worriedly. "I'm going to be fine right?" She doesn't answer me, and everyone's stopped eating at that point. "Right?" I ask while looking around the table, panic boiling just underneath the surface.

...

...

_Ok, this is just-_

"Yes, just refrain from digesting anymore and you'll be fine." Benesia states as calmly as if my life wasn't on the line.

I take a deep breath of relief and let it out slowly to steady my nerves. "Good, I was hoping to avoid being sent to a hospital with life-threatening injuries twice within a month." I joke quietly.

_I really hate hospitals. It's full of the sick and dying, not exactly my kind of place._

"Twice?" I turn to my immediate right and see Liara staring at me with a concerned and slightly curious look. I blink at her for a moment.

_Huh, forgot she was even here. Always quiet it seems._

I look around the table and realize everyone was waiting for an answer. I clear my throat and let myself speak, "I'm sure you've heard of an incident in the markets about eight days back? Involving a young Asari child and a Turian?" Liara nods and I notice Benesia and Shiala listening in more intently as well.

"Well, this is classified I assume so I wouldn't spread it around. I was there, I saved the child from being raped by the Turian. It's how I found out I was a biotic, I had just gotten extremely angry and protective of the child and had felt something boiling inside of me." I state factually.

I crease my brow in concentration as I remember the next part, "That's when I slammed so much biotic energy into the Turian that he went flying ass-first into the alley-wall! Pardon my language. The impact embedded him into the metallic structure with nearly every plate and bone in his body fractured or broken according the ME report I heard about." I notice a few of the disciples, Shiala included, staring at me intently.

I sigh and let myself remember the next part clearly, "I ended up nearly causing permanent neural scaring to myself from the exertion and getting hospitalized in a small coma for the last eight days. I just woke up early this morning." I look around to gage everyone's reactions.

Liara and Shiala seem to be in equal amounts of shock and Benesia looks strangely contemplative.

After a moment of silence I... feel the energy around Benesia... tighten? I can't really explain it. It just feels... strange, off.

_Is that what it feels like when someone uses biotics? What's she doing?_

"Who was involved in this, astonishing act of heroism?" She asks with a tinge of malice in her voice that seems so foreign compared to the color of dress she's wearing.

I frown intently at her, "It wasn't heroic, that Turian died during surgery at the hospital. My code of ethics is strict, I don't do things like that, ever. And if you must know, the child was the only daughter of Matriarch Lidanya. I can't say who the Turian was without provoking a political war so I won't." I cross my arms in anger and guilt at having to recite the second time I had one of these _incidents_ to complete strangers.

I keep eye-contact with Benesia and I watch as she relaxes again as a result.

I sigh in relief and look regretfully back to the poisonous dish in front of me.

_I have to get over it, I'm going to be forced to kill people while I'm here, I need to just make a code of morals, like the Justicar's code. Oh, I need to remind myself to look that up later._

I activate and raise my omni-tool, "LIA, can you remind me to look up the Justicar's code when I get home?" I ask my personal VI assistant.

"Of course Scorpio." It replies calmly and coolly like usual.

I smile at my omni-tool and say, "Merci, LIA."

_So glad I decided to build that VI. I'd be absolutely lost without it._

Looking around the table I see everyone was staring at me for a bit more before going back to their meals so I decide to do so as well, but remembering what happened last time I tried eating something new, I decide to stick to liquids.

_I seriously hope nobody decided to serve the Asarian version of Ryncol or something..._

* * *

The rest of the eventing went exceptionally well, Benesia talked, I made jokes to which some laughed, Liara even started coming out of her shell for a bit until Shiala made a joke about "little blue children" that made me choke on my water and Liara blush so violently that her skin looked dark purple for a moment.

At the end of the evening I declared that I needed to be getting home and Liara quickly stands to walk me out. I look over to her and smile as she looks at me with those beautifully innocent deep blue eyes and said, "I'm alright with that." While trying to hide my blush.

Benesia stands from her seat as we walk by and she looks me directly in the eye to say, "I approve of your continued involvement with my only daughter."

My eyes widen at the implication in her stone-cold stare and I swallow nervously before nodding my agreement.

_She is WAY more frightening up close then she was portrayed as in ME1._

Liara and I walk in silence through the empty and darkened halls. Nothing disturbing the peace between us but the occasional ray of moon-light that illuminated a passage we were walking through.

I look out one of the large pane windows to notice the calming display of the ocean being pushed and pulled gently by the moon as it continued its slow but continuous path around the green and blue orb that was the Asari Homeworld.

I sigh contentedly as a smile touched my lips and my eyes drifted to my left just enough to notice Liara was staring at me before she looks away, seemingly nervous.

_Well, I'm here so I mine as well try and keep a lasting friendship with her. I mean whether or not I succeed I'll have a second chance when we meet up with Shepard in twelve years._

The thought of being on my own frightens me, but I've known social isolation before and I will no-doubt again suffer it's harsh waves in the fut-

"Scorpio?"

I blink and shake myself out of my thoughts as I look at Liara in surprise before saying, "Yes Liara?" I look out of the corner of my eye and realize we were walking down a long path around the back of the T'soni estate.

She avoids looking directly at me while she fidgets with her hands.

While she tries and find her voice I notice for the first time tonight that her dress was a thin veil of eloquent blue and deeply silken aqua-marine that accented her light blue lip-stick and face perfectly as the dim white light of Thessia's moon lit up her vibrant skin to reflect the inner complexities that I see every-time I look into her intelligent and brilliant eyes.

_She is truly the most beautiful creature in the entire galaxy._

We're about two thirds around the coastal region of the property when Liara re-gains her voice.

She stops abruptly and I instantly turn after two steps to look at her, "I have had a wonderful walk Scorpio, but I must be going." She says with regret tearing deeply into her posture.

I analyze her for a moment before alleviating my own fears that I was the cause of her distress and smiling at her warmly, "Liara, your welcome to continue our walk, I am enjoying your company very much." I can feel my heart start to ready itself for her rejection as I watch her look over her shoulder and back at the mansion, her body language screaming her indecision.

_To anyone other then someone like us, the meaning of this moment would be easily misunderstood. Introverts are shy and as such very cautious of being put out of their comfort zone, even when it isn't perceived as dangerous they still wish to do it willingly and only after weighing all their options. I know how introverts work like the back of my hand, because its the back of an introvert's hand._

I take a quiet step forward and reach out to offer my hand as she notices something not quite right in the universe and spins around to stare at me in shock and confusion.

She looks at my hand curiously for a moment before something dawns on her face and her body language stands resolute. She finally figured out her decision.

I wait in equal eagerness and anxiety as she looks one last time over her shoulder at the mansion and then looks back at me and smiles, her eyes gleaming in the moonlight. "I have been enjoying myself as well, let us continue our walk."

I smile brightly and nod as I lower my hand and turn as she walks by, now completely willing to see if our future friendship was meant to be.

We walk along in our new-found contented silence while exchanging meaningful glances at one another and watching the beauty the night-time coast had to offer.

"I have had a wonderful evening Scorpio." Liara states in all honesty from how her posture speaks of her comfort as she stands just inside the gates to the T'soni estate.

I smile and nod to her, "I have enjoyed the evening as well and hope to do it again some time."

She looks at me, letting the unanswered question linger for a moment longer than normal and I could swear I could hear a crow caw in the distance during that short time period.

Finally, she looks at me directly, her posture now more uncertain then ever before and says, "My birthday is in a few days, and my mother and I have reservations at Sherilun, but she cannot come." She looks at me with a slightly hopeful expression that I picked up as _I don't have any idea how to fix this and I don't want to dine alone on my birthday._

So I nod and say, "I would love to accompany you to dinner Liara."

She blushes as her eyes widen from embarrassment and she starts fidgeting with her dress uncomfortably, "Oh! Um, thanks. I will see you the day after tomorrow then?"

I smile and say, "Yes, Liara, I'll see you then." I turn and walk ten paces up to the still awaiting hacked cab and get in before waving to Liara and taking off towards my apartment building.

Sitting back into the driver's seat I sigh contentedly at such a weird start to a hopefully strong friendship. The skycar jerks to the left as my hack finally wears off and I grip the seat in fear for my life as it dives into heavy traffic for another hellish ride of dodging, diving, and spinning until just when I think I'm going to hurl it lands in the parking lot of my apartment building.

I let the skycar open up and I sit there for a moment so I can pry my fingers form my seat before getting out.

I shakily stand from the shock of the ride and turn around to kick the damn thing angrily and stomp off towards the main lobby.

_I really need to hunt down whoever programmed those things and bioticly break their legs!_

I stop in my tracks as a brilliant idea pops into my head and I turn around to look at the skycar for a second, then a wicked smile grows across my face as I see my plan come together.

Oh, that will do nicely...

I flash my omni-tool to life and install a looping line of code into the basic VI of the cab, forcing it to malfunction and deny any requests from rapid transit. "LIA park the cab somewhere in the parking lot, I'll deal with it tomorrow." I say while turning to continue my path towards the apartment building.

I run my gloved hand over my face and sigh tiredly at the days events while walking through the lobby and purposely ignore the Asari attendant's stares. I approach my apartment door and unlock and re-lock it as I step inside. Suddenly all my exhaustion hits me and I turn around to fall backwards onto the couch, not even bothering to turn on the lights as I let the sweat and sinister allure of sleep wash over me as I pass out, still in my armor.


	6. Surviving Insomnia

A/N This one is a nice break from the insanity and the first real look into another character's life in the story. It may not be too long, but it ties in the story a bit and shows how some people just need a day off sometimes. :)

Read Review and Enjoy!

* * *

_An empty void... Something that somehow always comforted me. I watch without blinking as the inky blackness around me is flashed into its own demise as the existence of the universe begins._

_I watch as hundreds of billions of stars swirl and spin into their own deaths within what seems like seconds._

_I let myself focus on one galaxy in particular and watch in shock as I recognize it as the Milky Way._

_Before I can even think about what it means, my vision speeds up and I can see hundreds of thousands of explosions pulse out and surround the galaxy as it's galactic populations rose and fell. The image zooms up onto a system filled with hundreds of strange ships in intense combat with large squid-like ships, but I can't remember what they are called._

_I ignore them and focus on the system, a massive blue star dominates the system with it's four planets orbiting around it in succession. I watch as the second planet is bombarded and nearly destroyed by the absolute horde of thousands among thousands of squid ships..._

_Then it all stops. The movement stops, the barren planet starts to recover and I feel a strange need to reach out and grasp the planet in my palm before my vision goes back to the void and I can feel myself waking up..._

* * *

My eyes open and I look around in the darkness for a moment, trying to figure out if I was still dreaming or not.

_Am I blind?_

I frown slightly before saying, "LIA activate the lights." I shut my eyes tight to avoid getting blinded before I blink and my eyes adjust to the shear volume of the white light.

I realize after a moment or two that I'm laying awkwardly on the couch and slowly get up only to realize my back was stiff as hell.

I cringe as I stand up fully and crack my spine to release the pressure before sighing at the ensuing pops and cracks. "Ahh..."

Stretching my arms and legs I realize for the first time in years I woke up feeling actually refreshed.

_Maybe I need to take more walks with Liara. I could definitely benefit from all the good nights of sleep I'd gain as a result, and I'm sure she'll be fine with stepping away from the desk, or lab, or whatever to just enjoy life every once and a while._

Yawning as my mind started up, I check my omni-tool for the time before freezing up.

_Oh man, it's only 0400! I slept for three and a half hours!_

...

_Nice! That's a new record for a weekday!_

I smile at how great the day was starting before an ache in my stomach reminds me of how hungry I am, so I walk into the kitchen to find some food. I open the cabinets and find them empty and frown.

_What?_

I close the cabinet and open the small fridge to find one bottle of some energy drink named Tupari.

_What the heck? Oh! Right, I haven't gone out shopping yet! Huh, you'd think I'd remember that._

Taking the bottle of Tupari with me, I close the fridge and unscrew the cap while walking back to the couch to start a shopping list.

_I should get some other things as well._

I look around the apartment and let my organizational side take over for a moment.

_Ok, I'll need toiletries, sheets, blankets, clothes, food, omni-gel, medi-gel, bandages, ok medical supplies in general, some snacks, a few recipe applications for my omni-tool, some dry-goods in case of emergencies, a space-heater, a lot of coffee and Ramen if they have it, some upgrades for my newly requisitioned skycar, uh let's see... oh and last but not least, a holo-projector and some movies._

Reviewing my list I hum in contemplation before adding _blocks of ammunition_ to the list as well since I was going to need to learn how to fire my weapons some day, then I remember that you could order nearly anything over the Extranet in this universe and smirk deviously.

_Oh yeah, that'll do nicely._

Accessing my omni-tool I login to the Extranet and start my search for a good department store website with delivery.

* * *

Forty minutes later I'm finished ordering everything from _Foreigner's To Go_ and I'm now just waiting for them to be delivered.

_God was that expensive. I think I ended up spending a good 23,000 credits!_

I look at my transaction history for my EOFA account...

_Actually 22,870 credits, so now I'm down to 89,530. NOW I need to watch my spending more carefully, I'll definitely need to get a job to just break even at the end of every month. Not to mention the 830,000 credits I have to make by the end of the year to pay for AAH. Thats more than I've spent during my entire lifetime back in my home universe. I hope I don't need anything else._

Closing down my omni-tool I sigh in exasperation at how much inflation had increased since I left my home universe.

_Seriously, a bulk purchase of ramen was like 300 credits for 120 servings! It's ridiculous! A Native fruit that was recommended as the equivalent of an Earth apple was 12 credits a piece! I don't even WANT to know how much all this would cost on the Citadel._

I let my frustration from my living situation slip my mind as I try and figure out how many calories I need to eat daily.

_If I'm a biotic then don't I need an intake of like 4,000 calories daily? I'm not really looking forward to that bill._

I shrug and finally pack up my weapons and move their cases under the coffee table before hopping on and sitting down cross-legged to meditate.

_I've needed to do this for SO long._

I think over all the events of the last nine days...

_Ok, I woke up on a park bench with a gash on my left leg and absolutely no idea where I was until I recognized Liara as she treated my leg with the first omni-tool I've ever seen in real life and now I know how it feels to be treated by medi-gel as well._

I open my eyes and stare at the wall to the right of my front door for a moment.

_Holy crap, that was just the first half hour!_

I shake my head in shock before closing my eyes and thinking back to what else happened on the first day...

_I spent four hours selling my IPhone after nearly having a heart attack from the first skycar ride I've ever experienced. Then I had to deal with a crazy Salarian before tinkering on my newly acquired omni-tools and meeting the first Quarian I've ever seen and trading a thousand credits for LIA, my personal VI assistant._

...

_How the hell did I survive ANY of that?_

I just ignore the thought as I remember the second incident I've ever had in which someone died...

_Oh man._

I lower my head as guilt wraps its cold hands around my heart.

_That Turian was a leader of his people, and I killed him for one incident of indecency._

A small part in the back of my mind reminds me that I have to be subjective and un-bias in my judgments if I want to live up to the legend of Scorpio. I shake my head.

_That's no reason to kill someone without knowing all the facts._

I remember the fearful look in the little Asari girl's eyes when he punched her into submission and my fists clench tightly as I try and contain the anger that I felt when I spelled out that bastard's death. I open my eyes as I feel my connection to my biotics strengthen and I notice a blue haze lifting off of my armor in waves as I struggle to hold myself steady.

_I need to calm down._

I let my memories shift to when I turned around in the hospital and saw that the child was alright. I let that feeling wash over me and my biotics calm down and weaken before collapsing entirely. I left up my hands and look at them in contemplation.

_All that power in my fingertips, and I have no idea how to control it..._

Suddenly I remember AAH and all the supposed training it offered for Natural Biotics.

_I seriously hope they can teach me, I feel like a wild animal ready to go on a killing rampage at any moment._

I run my gloved hands over my face and just breath in and out, trying to comprehend how dangerous I could really be if I actually lost control. All the innocent people I could kill in I thought it necessary...

_I can't handle any more blood on my hands if I want to keep my sanity. I need to learn EVERYTHING about my powers and I NEED to control them completely._

Now filled with a new resolution, I delve deeper into my memories and let the rest of my time here slip away into the back of my mind while I pulled everything I already knew about biotics to the fore-front of my mind.

_Take a deep breath, visualize an orb..._

Letting everything else leave my mind I close my eyes and I can feel the edges of my fingertips start to tingle with untapped energy.

_Reach out and grasp the orb mentally without physically touching it..._

I spread my fingertips over my lap and my heart-rate accelerates as my skin starts to subtly vibrate.

_Visualize a star, burning it's massive energy off in one instant, exploding outwards only to spin in it's own gravitational field and collapse back into the core, then do so with your own inner potential.. This part is the difficult one._

I focus on my own center and let the tingling lift off of my fingertips and stay within my sphere of influence over my lap before tensing every muscle in my body in concentration.

The field of blue energy collapses into a small marble of burning biotic energy and I feel my mind struggle to keep it steady as I count the seconds.

_One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Si-_

I gasp for breath and fall forwards onto the surface of the metal coffee table as my head and spine burns from the exertion.

_God... I-_

I grab the bottle of Tupari next to me and chug all 16 ounces before gasping for breath again and laying flat on-top of the coffee table, trying to avoid passing out as the edges of my vision darken.

The moment passes and I re-gain control of my breathing as my vision clears up.

_Oh frick... that was A LOT worst then last time._

Dragging myself off the coffee table I lean back into the couch and lift my hand to my nose and sigh as I find it bleeding like last time I tried this.

_Oh great..._

I carefully stand and stagger my way into the bathroom before running the sink and splashing some water on my face to shock myself out of it. Surprisingly when I look at myself in the mirror my nose bleed looks like it's stopped.

_Ok, I'm definitely going to avoid doing that again until I know more about biotics._

I splash some more water in my face and wipe it off onto my sleeve since I still don't have any towels.

_How long has it been?_

*Ding* *Ding*

...

_Please tell me I'm not hearing things again._

*Ding* "Scorpio it seem as if your packages have arrived." LIA comments from my omni-tool.

"Oh thank goodness." I breath a sigh of relief and pull up my mask while covering my head with my hood.

_No need to show people your face unless they ask for it._

Walking out of the bathroom I move around the couch and unlock the door. It opens to a Turian with green clan markings typing away at his omni-tool while two others with identical markings stood behind him looking really tired.

"Can I help you?" I ask as I bend my neck up to look the first Turian in the eye from behind my HUD display that painted his outline as orange which according to the manual meant they were only slightly dangerous. I let my eyes drift to where their talons were before looking him in the eye again.

_Slightly my arse those things can cut me the tissue paper!_

The Turian blinks once at me and looks back at his omni-tool for a moment before sighing and scowling as he reestablishes eye contact, "So, you're the guy we're delivering to _Human_?" His two-toned voice hits me as aggressive.

_Ok, now I'm glad I put my mask up._

I ignore the under tone and nod, "Yeah, there's probably twenty or thirty crates-"

"We have one hundred forty seven to be shipped to this residence." He states factually.

I ignore the fact that he cut me off and stare at him for a moment before sighing deeply and walking past him and down the hall, "Ok, where'd you park?"

I can hear their heavy steps come up behind me as I reach the lobby, "Just to the left next to some guy's cab."

I cringe internally and hope they didn't scrape the paint off or anything.

We walk out the front slide-doors and I look over to find a five meter long cargo transport parked awkwardly so the back was sitting within eight feet of the front door.

_Ok, well..._

I turn to the Turians and they walk past me after they realize I had no idea what to do. "Come on, your products are in sections eight through twelve." The head Turian states as he types up and unlocks the first section.

The outer wall sections off and slides up like a garage door to reveal at least thirty half-cubic meter crates. I look to one of the other two Turians and he frowns at me and crosses his arms. I shrug and look back to the crates.

_This is going to take a while._

Picking up the nearest crate I walk past the Turian's, through the lobby, and set it to the left inside the apartment before walking back outside to find them still standing there glaring at me.

*sigh* "I'll pay each of you 200 credits if you help me with the crates." I comment while grabbing another cube. The head Turian shrugs and waves his hand for the other two to help out. I nod thankfully towards him.

_Thanks man, glad to see you get over your prejudice._

* * *

It took twenty minutes for all three of us to stuff the crates into my apartment and afterwards I gave the two Turian's that helped their credits and raised an eyebrow at the one that didn't kelp out before he growls at me and I decide I should just take the hit financially rather then literally.

The door closes and I turn to stare at the 140 crates. The Turian's didn't stack them, they just set them down wherever and now they dominate the apartment. I lower my mask and pinch the bridge of my nose in annoyance before taking a deep breath and getting started with the unpacking. I kneel down next to the first crate and activate my omni-tool to unseal it.

_This is going to take a while..._

* * *

"There." I set the last of the surprisingly collapsible crates on top of the stacks I made up against the wall next to the door. I call up my omni-tool and check the time, 1600 GST, I shrug since I knew it would take a long time and walk through my freshly cleaned apartment to make some dinner.

_I should really learn how to cook in this universe before I do anything._

Scanning the oven-looking appliance with my omni-tool I ask, "LIA do you know how to run this?"

...

"Yes, the RTA Cook-All kitchen appliance is ratted as an infrared oven with multiple settings designed to cook a range of dishes for nearly every species, including a sterilization option for Quarians. It is the only one of it's kind on the market to cater to both dextro amino and levo amino species." It states as if it was trying to sell it to customers at a mega-mall.

I look over the digital display and notice one side labeled dextro and the other for levo, then each side sectioned off to each individual species.

_I can't find the temperature setting anywhere!_

"LIA how does it cook the food." I ask while continuing my maddening search for a temperature setting.

...

"Through selective DNA sampling to identify what time is required to thoroughly cook whatever dish you decide to use it for. Note: This appliance is not rated for any dishes outside roasts and a variety of stews."

I look at my omni-tool for a moment, trying to decide whether I should upgrade my VI to have a bit more personality before I turn back to the practically useless device in front of me.

"Does it at least have a working stove top?" I ask LIA hopefully.

_If I can't use the oven then please can I use the stove top?_

...

"Yes." I sigh in relief before taking opening the cabinet I stored the 1200 credits worth of stove-top graded cookware.

_SO glad all this wasn't a waste._

Placing the pan on one of the burners I look around where the knobs are usually located to find it blank with a small icon that looks like an-

My eyes widen and I call up my omni-tool before connecting it to the stove and activating the burner remotely.

_This thing is awesome! I can control the entire appliance from my omni-tool! It even gives feedback as to what's on in the apartment! Say goodbye to the days where we had to worry about leaving the stove or TV on when we go out!_

I excitedly open the fridge and take out something that I thought was impossible when I bought them, de-yoked eggs!

_I can't even believe I was able to find them online! They were in the health-nut section of the web-page. No-longer do I have to separate yoke from protean when cooking eggs the way I like them. Sure they cost 2 credits more per carton, but at least I'm not just throwing the yokes away like I used to do back in my home universe._

I think back to all the weird foods I found in that section of the web-page, 0% genetically modified cow milk, meat bars, instant calamari soup, freeze-dried varren liver...

_I don't even get why those are being sold in the Human section, we eat weird things yes, but not THAT weird._

I grab a knife and cut up a native plant called M'kish, that I was promised wasn't toxic to Humans, and add it with some (also guaranteed non-toxic) fish whose name I can barely even pronounce let alone spell, to the pan. I flip the side of the eggs over and make it into an omelet.

_Just like every morning when I wake up early from nightmares and decide to make breakfast for everyone._

I close my eyes and block out the fond memories to avoid bursting into tears.

_I'm still not ok with being thrown against my will into this place. It's an opportunity no doubt. An opportunity to start over and become a mass murdering psychotic biotic with no remorse._

...

_I think I'm going to get along just fine with Jack when I meet up with her, maybe we'll write poetry together, start a novel. Hmm... It's 2171, so Jacks ten years old right now..._

I stop cooking for a second as a realization dawns on me.

_Jack is being tortured right now..._

...

_Oh damn it, and I thought I was going to have a nice day!_

I let the thought linger in my mind as I plate my omelet and notice the stove automatically turns off when the pan leaves the surface.

Now that's useful.

I grab a random flavored bottle of Tupari from the fridge and walk with my plate into the living room where I sit down and turn on the holo-projector I positioned behind the couch with some surround sound boxes that were a pain to find and install. I sit back and select an Asarian drama/romance I found that was highly recommended on the Extranet.

"LIA dim the lights, 60%." I smile contentedly as the lights dim and the movie starts.

Good thing I remembered at the last minute to get the English version.

_Let the Lies Wander, an Arin Elcor Production..._

_..._

_..._

"Well... Damn it!" I shout in frustration as the first scene shows two Elcor talking while slowly walking along what looks like a sidewalk.

_"(With barely contained exasperation) I wish I could understand you Torin, all your life you throw away females like containers of waste, they do not deserve that."_ The Elcor on the left states while shaking it's massive head side to side.

The Elcor beside the first looks off into the distance and the camera angle shifts to his perspective as he looks out towards the sunset, he looks strangely contemplative as a Salarian's voice speaks his thoughts, _He will never understand what inner turmoil I have, the only female I love is the Asari counselor._

My eyes widen in shock at the plot twist.

_Ok, maybe I'll just watch it until I'm done eating..._

* * *

Four hours later the screen flashes from the last touching moment of the most well-acted drama/romance I'd ever seen and I clap enthusiastically for a moment to show how amazing I thought the movie was.

I calm down and take a deep breath as I remember the best and worst parts of the movie. When Torin rushes into the counsel chambers covered in flowers to declare his love for the Asari Counselor. When the Counselor reveals to him in public after a month of courtship and says she's secretly bonded to another Asari and is keeping it a secret even from the Asari Republics and she's using him as publicity.

_Goddess..._

I smile as I remembered my favorite moment of all.

_When Torin broke up with his new girlfriend he got to make the counselor jealous right after his mother died and as a result he commits suicide just as the Asari Counselor came to apologize and confess her eternal love, I cried. It was so sad._

I wipe my face with a napkin and commit the movie to permanent memory as I walk my empty plate and Tupari bottle to the kitchen.

_What a wonderfully non-chaotic afternoon._

I deposit the plate into the sink and the bottle into the trash before bringing the lights up to 100% and just enjoying the peaceful evening I was having.

I look out the window above the stove-top and see hundreds of skycars flying around like the insane little death-traps they are. Sighing contentedly, I turn and walk back into the living room to sit on the couch before changing the holo-projector to a news channel I heard about.

"Welcome to the Armali News Network, I'm Helen Peram." An Asari wearing a weird dress says directly to the camera as she walks down a street with people passing by without a care. "Tonight's big story; organized crime is struck a deadly blow as conflicts between rival Eclipse and Blue-Sun's groups boil down to a deadly explosion at a local hotel." She raises her left arm as she walks towards the camera and a silent video of a skycar crashing onto the top of a hotel comes on screen.

_Ohh... that's not good._

"As you can see, the resulting explosion engulfed the entire fleet of transports owned by the widely known Taseri Hotels mere minutes after impact." The screen shows the explosions in high-def resolution and then the camera zooms in as the smoke clears slightly to stop on a black and fuzzy figure holding a crate and running away from the scene.

_Oh..._

I cringe as I recognize myself.

_Well, at least they can barely recognize my suit, it's just a fuzzy figure._

"Police suspect this individual to be the culprit behind what they consider an act of terrorism as no one could have accidentally crashed into the landing platform at such high speeds."

I frown at the screen, "They are TO able to accidentally crash into the building if their navigation fails and they have no idea how to drive the damn thing!"

_Calm down, calm down Dylan, there's no reason to be frustrated for getting framed a terrorist for crashing a cab into an obvious Blue-Sun's smuggling operation._

I look up and watch as they play the video of me knocking the Blue-Sun's trooper out and taking off as the rest of the troopers come out of the smoke cover and start shooting at the skycar as it passes the camera at tremendous speeds. The camera freezes on the skycar and even though it's really fuzzy and blurry you could still make out my completely black outline from the driver-side window.

_Well... frick. There goes my peace of mind, but I did look awesome when I took out that trooper._

The screen goes back to the reporter, "Thankfully no-one was killed in the tragedy-" She pauses and blinks before looking directly at the camera in shock, "This just in, it appears the well known electronics shop Circuits and More has not only suffered a double homicide of the two owners and suicide by the murderer," The screen changes to live footage of the store and the police carting away the bodies. "but is now being investigated by the authorities as being an accessory to the hotel bombing due to civilian sightings of a mysterious black figure arriving at the scene moments before the police arrived from an anonymous tip."

"Oh come on!" I shout at the screen.

The screen shifts back to the reporter, "Upon further investigation the police found the mysterious black figure's getaway vehicle abandoned two blocks down the street," A still image of the police checking the skycar is put onto screen and at the bottom left corner I see the edge of my heel barely in the picture as I turned away. "parked outside of a local guns and hardware store The Chained Krogan," Another still image of a crazy-looking Salarian firing at the police officer's, two Asari, comes on screen. "who's owner was going to be brought in for questioning before he pulled out two pistols on the officers and screamed, 'eclipse forever', before authorities gunned him down."

_Uhh... that is just, terrible. Absolutely terrible. Now I not only have to worry about them tracking the stuff I sold to him back to my account, but I can't be seen outside wearing my armor anymore! God damn it! I mean his death is disconcerting and a tragic loss of life but the living are in more danger at present!_

The reporter blinks as the screen goes back to her and she says, "The police have therefore linked all three incidences to fighting between the well known Eclipse and Blue-Sun's mercenary groups."

_Oh, well at least they won't be _only_ focused on finding me._

She pauses again before saying, "This just in, the APC have declared a formal statement."

_Wait, what? So soon?_

I lean forward and watch the holo-screen intently. It shifts to what looks like a podium with the APC banner in violet behind it as an Asari adorned in military robes stands proudly and behind her to her right I see-

_Holy crud... that's Officer Rila!_

The Asari at the podium looks down for a moment before looking directly into the camera and saying, "This tragedy alone has caused over 40 million credits in property damage, cost the lives of four people, and forced our streets to become unsafe in the eyes of the citizens. We at the APC have seen this city through it's harshest times and have decided to respond to the worst tragedy in two decades to befall this great city with a campaign to eradicate organized crime and arrests will be made in according to this goal. Thank you."

_Ok, now I'm starting to get worried at how I'm changing the course of events. Also, THIS is the worst tragedy to befall the city in two decades? There used to be a homicide a week in my hometown, and that was on the year in which arsine of commercial buildings was on the rise!_

I shake my head and turn off the holo-projector, I'd seen enough news to last me at least another week or so.

"That report was ridiculous..." I state in slight disgust at how much 'this just in' was used.

_It's supposed to be for emergencies not day-to day tragedy!_

I sigh in resentment for a moment before getting curious about what the APC was going to do.

_I kind of have a hand in the entire mess to I mine as well keep myself informed._

I call up my omni-tool and say, "LIA call Officer Rila from the APC for a video chat." While taking off the main body of my suit and throwing on one of the dark gray shirts I bought to avoid looking like the person on the news.

"At once Scorpio."

The display on my left arm folds up and into a good sized video-chat screen. The black projection displays a spinning buffering symbol in the middle of the screen for a moment before Rila's face is shown, "Hello?" She says while looking at me for a moment before recognizing me. "Oh Scorpio, what is going on?" She rubs her eyes tiredly and I realize I just woke her up since she looked like she was still in bed.

_Well, I'd better be brief if I don't want this to drag on._

"I saw you on the news just now, I was wondering what was going on since the last time we met was in a hospital." I smirk as a mood setter that the conversation would be informal.

She yawns and shakes her head before looking at me, "Yeah, this stuff is insane. First I get called out to a possible stabbing on the west side of Armali, then I find out about the attack on transit and have to turn around across three lanes of rush-hour traffic to get over there since it was an 'all hands on deck' type of thing." I nod in understanding to show I was listening. Her eyes sharpen for a moment, "After we figure out that the explosion was intensionally done on a Blue-Suns shipment we were going to turn the other way since it was usually a dead end in these types of things. That's when the commander of the Blue-Suns calls his car in missing at the same instance that an anonymous tip from you is sent about a double homicide and suicide in the Markets!" She shakes her head in exasperation as she finally sits up out of bed and rolls her neck.

_She's been working A LOT lately._

She takes a deep breath and looks back at the camera, "And then as I'm processing the crime scene ANOTHER call comes in about a spotting of the commander's stolen skycar just two blocks down the road so I tell the officers there to question whoever they can." She frowns, "After I heard that the owner of the store there committed suicide by firing upon the officers we looked around but couldn't find any connection. Until we found a crate of Blue-Suns merchandise under the counter." She shakes her head and looks into the camera apologetically, "I am sorry, I have had a hellish couple of days and it is not right of me to push my problems onto you."

I smile at her, "I studied psychology Rila, I'm used to listening to people's problems."

She smiles weakly, "Thanks, anything new with you? I know we only met once, but drop-out psychologists should stick together right?"

I nod and snort a laugh, "You got that right."

_You don't even KNOW how terrible my last few days have been._

I filter out the incriminating or psychotic things, "Well, aside from the two incidents you know about the only things that have been a bit strange would be how I was at that store that I called in the double murder/suicide for the same night I confronted the Turian General in the alley."

Her eyes widen, "No kidding."

I nod, "Yep, and I even had a conversation with the owners while I was there about a crazy Salarian that was running around."

She frowns slightly, "Really?"

My eyes widen, "Yeah, really. That's why I went back there after leaving the hospital, I was going to take a better look at their stock and I ended up walking in on the few first aliens I really ever met lying dead on the floor. That's when I sent the tip."

She smiles, "I always knew I felt something strange about you. Your honest, I like that."

I watch her intensely for a moment, trying to get the underlying meaning of her words to make sense. Shaking my head I decide the conversation needed to end, "Alright, lets hope these nest few days are better than the last."

"May the Goddess watch over you Scorpio." And she cuts off the connection.

_Huh, so apparently everything I did was connected? That makes sense I guess._

I stifle a yawn and check the time to find it was about time for me to get to bed if I wanted to get my standard three hours of sleep.

_It's nice that I was finally able to relax for a day, kind-of, maybe. I'll try again next week and see if anything turns out better._

I unlock and take off the rest of my armor before folding it and the under-suit into a crate and sealing it before stuffing it under the coffee table with my weapons cases.

_I really need to get to a shooting range and figure out how to fire those things properly._

Throwing on some shorts I look back to the couch and tap the one button that was hooked up to it via omni-tool. The entire back folds down and pushes out automatically until it's up against the wall and the middle section of the futuristic futon slides into place from both sides.

_I love doing that._

I crack open a crate I labeled 'bedroom' and take out a neatly stacked pair of sheets before placing them appropriately on the 'bed'. Then I take out a blanket and two pillows. I kick the crate away and climb over the 'bed' to lay down on the surprisingly stable and soft surface.

"LIA turn off the lights and remind me to go to the shooting range tomorrow." I think about what else I have to do and remember I'm meeting Liara for dinner and that I wanted to work on that requisitioned skycar I have forcefully parked outside. "Oh, and also about my skycar, dinner with Liara, and anything else I have on the to-do list."

"Of course Scorpio." It responds, slightly muffled from being under the sheets.

_Ah! Almost forgot to take these things off._

Sitting up I slide off the omni-tool bands and set them in a charger I found online.

_I have no idea how long their batteries last, but I am not going to take any chances with this type of technology._

Laying back down, I wonder what everyone else is doing back home.

_Are they searching for me? Have they found my body or am I actually in the Mass Effect Universe?_

I shake the thoughts from my head and focus on things that are important.

_I wonder what everyone in this universe is doing..._

Remembering what I can from Mass Effect Wiki I try and figure out what exactly everyone else is doing while I lay there staring into the dark room.

_Shepard's joining the Alliance next year so he's seventeen, Tali's ten years old, so is Jack, Kasumi is eleven, Ashley's thirteen. Huh, since my birthday is in October and it's, well, November by the Earth calender I think, and I'm eighteen right now so apparently I'm now older then Shepard?_

...

_Oh my god that is SO going to be brought up when I join the Normandy! Haha! That's awesome._

I smile for a second before I remember what year it is and what just happened last year.

_Oh god... Mindoir... I hope Shepard didn't go through that. He/she might be in the running for the most insane person in the galaxy then, and I don't need anymore competition! In all seriousness though I really hope Shepard was a spacer like I kept all my Shepards at back home. it just never felt right forcing trauma onto someone more then the one required game to see if anything good changes to get better._

I shake my head and re-focus myself.

_Ok, I think L3 amps were created last year as well so if I did want an amp, which I don't, then I could avoid a lot of migraines and even MORE crippling insanity then I already deal with. Haha! Yeah I am definitely going to have some nice conversations with the crew when ME1 comes around. That is, IF I survive that long._

I take a deep breath and remind myself how dangerous all this was before moving on.

_Oh! The Batarians closed their embassy this year! Which means even more people are going to resent me, great, you know I haven't seen one other Human besides myself the entire time I've been on Thessia. I mean I know it's only 2171 but I'd expect to see one. I don't want to be the only Human on the planet, it puts too much pressure on me to be the sole representative of my species on the Asari Homeworld._

...

_Lets see... Cerberus assassinates the Pope in 2171! I'm not religious but it's a big deal for Cerberus and since the death was ruled natural due to his heart giving out from Cerberus' toxic rosary beads it shouldn't be an event I need to remember. I need to look up all the recent history of the mid-west and the United States, Earth in general actually. I don't need to look stupid when I do meet another Human and we get to talking about, well, Human stuff I guess._

...

_Did I just think 'Human stuff'?_

...

_Yeah I'm tired, the rest can wait 'till morning._

I let the softness of the sheets and 'bed' lull me into hopefully a dreamless sleep...

* * *

Rila just lays in bed, unable to get to sleep. Scorpio flooded her mind when she slept and she was starting to think she was obsessed.

"He's just a Human." She tells herself for the thousandth time today.

Then why can't I get him out of my head?

She sighs and closes her eyes only to see his face, to see his smile, to remember his laugh, and she inadvertently smiles in false contentment that all will be alright, if only for a moment. She reminds herself of where she is and holds back a strangely empty feeling when she tightens her grasp on her bed sheets and finds herself alone.

I need to get to sleep. She takes her secondary pillow and hugs it as she tries to get to sleep for the fourth time.

She feels herself drift ever-so slowly into her own personal bliss...

*beep*

She snaps her blood-shot eyes open and stares into the dark room, hoping she was dreaming.

*beep*

"Oooh!" She complains as she rolls over to grab her omni-tool from her nightstand charger and slips it on before seeing the message is a video call and opening it tiredly.

"Hello?" She says while looking at the barely visable screen while her vision re-adjusted to the light. She perks up slightly as her heart beats harder from recognizing who was calling her. "Oh Scorpio, what is going on?" She rubs her eyes tiredly while trying not to panic.

_Oh Goddess! Why? Why why why why! Why him?!_

"I saw you on the news just now, I was wondering what was going on since the last time we met was in a hospital." Scorpio says with a smirk that forces Rila to bite her cheek to keep herself from smiling like an idiot.

_Why does he do this to me every-time I see him?!_

Rila yawns and shakes her head before looking at the screen and remembering the press release, "Yeah, this stuff is insane. First I get called out to a possible stabbing on the west side of Armali, then I find out about the attack on transit and have to turn around across three lanes of rush-hour traffic to get over there since it was an 'all hands on deck' type of thing." She remembers the next part and her eyes sharpen from her internal frustration.

_Why couldn't the OTHER officers on duty do all of this?! I was still exhausted from staying up throughout the night to see Scorpio wake up out of his coma for Goddess' sake!_

"After we figure out that the explosion was intensionally done on a Blue-Suns shipment we were going to turn the other way since it was usually a dead end in these types of things. That's when the commander of the Blue-Suns calls his car in missing at the same instance that an anonymous tip from you is sent about a double homicide and suicide in the Markets!" Rila sits up out of bed and shakes her head before rolling her neck to crack it.

_I wonder how long I have been awake, probably twenty eight hours now. _

She takes a deep breath and looks back at the screen before speaking, "And then as I'm processing the crime scene ANOTHER call comes in about a spotting of the commander's stolen skycar just two blocks down the road so I tell the officers there to question whoever they can." She frowns angrily and takes a deep breath before continuing, "After I heard that the owner of the store there committed suicide by firing upon the officers, we looked around but couldn't find any connection. Until we found a crate of Blue-Suns merchandise under the counter."

_I cannot believe I am spilling my guts to him, it is so rude of me._

She shakes her head and looks into the camera apologetically, "I am sorry, I have had a hellish couple of days and it is not right of me to push my problems onto you."

Scorpio smiles at her and she feels her stomach tighten, "I studied psychology Rila, I'm used to listening to people's problems."

Rila feels a blush coming up her neck and tries to fight it as she smiles weakly.

_Why do I feel so nervous around him?_

She continues the smile as she says, "Thanks, anything new with you? I know we only met once, but drop-out psychologists should stick together right?" Rila internally cringes from the bad joke.

_Why did I say that!_

"You got that right." She looks at the screen in shock, she didn't offend him!

_Why do I care if I offend him or not?! I barely know him!_

Rila swallows nervously and waits intently for Scorpio's fill of his day. "Well, aside from the two incidents you know about the only things that have been a bit strange would be how I was at that store that I called in the double murder/suicide for the same night I confronted the Turian General in the alley."

_Really?_

Rila's eyes widen, "No kidding."

_That is weird._

He nods, "Yep, and I even had a conversation with the owners while I was there about a crazy Salarian that was running around."

_Wait, what?_

She frowns slightly and looks at the screen sceptically, "Really?"

Scorpio's eyes widen, "Yeah, really. That's why I went back there after leaving the hospital, I was going to take a better look at their stock and I ended up walking in on the few first aliens I really ever met lying dead on the floor. That's when I sent the tip."

_I remember, that tip somehow got me thinking about you._

Rila involuntarily smiles as she says, "I always knew I felt something strange about you. Your honest, I like that."

She freezes up as she hears her own words. She starts to panic even more when Scorpio just stares at her for a moment before shaking his head and saying, "Alright, lets hope these nest few days are better than the last."

_End it! End it now!_

"May the Goddess watch over you Scorpio." She says quickly before terminating the connection and lowering her head in total confusion.

_What was all that? Was I, flirting with him?_

Her eyes widen and she shakes her head violently, "No! Nonono! I am not that type of person!" She shouts out-loud to no-one but her empty, unfurnished room.

She sighs angrily and looks around miserably at how barren her life was now that she moved out of her parents house.

_It has not been the same since I left. Nothing has..._

She falls back into her pillow and closes her eyes, trying to avoid any weird dreams about a certain Human while she rests for her early-morning shift in five hours.

* * *

A/N So... What do you guys think about what's going on so far? I'm curious for your opinions! :)


	7. Growing Roots

A/N Please Read, Review, and Enjoy!

Oh, and to whoever sent the strongly worded Private Message scolding me for not having a disclaimer, IT'S ON MY PROFILE PAGE so please back off. ;)

* * *

Inside the dark apartment that once was home to a Turian scholar who committed suicide in the bathroom, a sleeping form stirs from the waking nightmares that plagues his mind...

* * *

I open my eyes for the eighth time in the last half an hour and try to remember what the last flash of horror my dreams were tained with like usual before sighing in exasperation.

_Why can't I just have a normal night of sleep? Does someone hate me?_

I roll over and close my eyes, only throw them open as I see the last breath of a police officer I barely recognize. I forget it within seconds and sit up out of bed.

_I really hate the permanent erase function that all my dreams seem to have when I wake up, for someone with near-perfect memory it gets old after the third night._

Throwing my sheets off I stand and grab one of my omni-tools to check the time. Seeing it was 0200 I shrug, knowing how common it was for me to wake up before five in the morning.

Walking into the bathroom I grab the tooth-brush I bought and the tube of toothpaste I had to back-order to get in non-dextro.

_I really don't understand how even a hundred and forty years into the future we haven't found a way to brush without wasting ten minutes of our morning._

Ten minutes later like clockwork I spit and rinse before checking that my stubble wasn't too agitating and calling up my omni-tool, "LIA how's my day looking?" I ask while closing my eyes for a few seconds of rest.

She answers two seconds later, "You have scheduled working on your skycar, researching the Justicar's code, going out to a shooting range, and then you have a dinner reservation with Liara T'soni this afternoon at 1850."

_Ok, now I remember._

"Merci LIA." I deactivate my omni-tool and dig around under the coffee table for my armor before remembering the news report and opting to just wear civilian close today.

Throwing on some jeans and a gray t-shirt I grab my other omni-tool and unlock my door before taking a deep breath and lifting up the three crates that held the skycar parts I bought.

_Oh, these arn't that heavy, huh._

Shrugging as I lock my door and walk down the hall and into the abandoned lobby. I pause in the entryway for a second before remembering the time and walking out into the cool, dark, and damp morning. I take a deep breath of the slightly salty air and sigh as I'm reminded the benefits of waking up before sunrise.

I remember all the times I couldn't sleep and decided to go jogging to see if it made me tired, it never did but I learned a lot about my neighbors through some early-morning investigations.

I smile as I remember the time I 'broke' into the back yard of the neighborhood elder and found marijuana plants growing in her garden shed.

_Ahh, I can still hear how much she screamed in annoyance at being caught. It wasn't too funny to have the cops called because of the situation, but the look on her wrinkled face when I told the officer's about her pot farm was priceless!_

I chuckle happily and sigh before setting down the crates next to the parked cab that I hacked two days prior. I look it over and am relieved to find my stationary loop still in the software.

_It's good to know how easy it is to hack a dangerous piece of machinery in this day and age. They don't even have firewalls for god's sake!_

Calling up my omni-tool I open an Extranet window and search for the schematics of a skycar. Instantly I'm brought to a website for hackers and joy-riders where it has every known make and model of skycar and a blog connected to each outlining how to break into it.

_Oh, well you know what they say, the Extranet is the modern-day thief's textbook._

I tap on the 'Thessian ART's Shuttle' and instantly the schematic is downloaded and open in a 3D map over my forearm. I search the hologram for the main control panel and find it behind a security seal right behind the hydrogen cells.

I take one last look at the schematic before finding it on the real thing easily and cracking it open with a quick application of omni-gel like the manual says. The seal breaks and I lift off the metallic casing to see the control panel.

_Ok, so according to this I'll need to remove the identification and navigation cards._

I look between the panel and the hologram multiple times before unplugging the three rectangular computer chips and reading the next part of the instructions.

_So I need to re-program the cards to suit my needs?_

I look at the options the manual outlined and shrug before just setting it up as a personal skycar using the example codes on the hologram and plugging them back into the panel.

_Done. Now lets get started with the rest of this tech._

Pulling over one of the crates of tech I pull out a spiral-looking metal coil thing with three wires hanging off the side and start installing the upgraded motion dampener according to the hologram.

_Ok, so I have to pull out these wires..._

* * *

After six hours of work I manage to install a new more efficient eezo core without blowing myself up, some better seat pads, a very sensitive motion dampener so I don't get thrown around as much, and an air conditioner/heating module.

_Why these things don't come standard with one is beyond me._

Then I built in an omni-radio into the dashboard and added it's controls to the holographic display inside.

_I wasn't into cars that much back in my own universe, but this is more like building a computer then a car so I'm seriously loving the experience. And I don't need to clean grease off of everything I own when I tinker! It's awesome!_

Some of the more personal things I installed include a blood-red HAPTIC display on the interior and 'blind-view' windows that allow me to see out but others not to see in.

_I might be more then a bit paranoid, but it adds to the mystic and... I'm talking to myself, great._

Another thing I did was a bit more difficult. I re-paint the entire thing mid-night black. The 6000 credit paint was designed to harden on impact, allowing it to become a very strange mix of armor and paint.

_At least that's what the can says. Something I'll definitely need if I'm planning to get into more gunfights, yeah it's a must. I seriously need to stop spending so many credits though. I'm going to be broke within a week at this rate!_

The last thing I did was paint a silver-lined scorpion onto the driver-side door with some cheap metallic paint I found at a local hardware store off the Extranet. It has neon properties, so if a current passes through it then it glows white.

I wipe my sweaty brow and step back to admire my work.

_This thing is a masterpiece. I'm SO glad I took drawing in high-school because that scorpion is seriously perfect._

I frown as I look over everything again and I feel as if it was missing somethi- "Ah! Oh course!"

Calling up my omni-tool I kneel down next to the hydrogen cell panel and flash-forge a thin, serrated, and flaming omni-blade I bought off an STG website for 500 credits. Absolutely as careful as I can I burn a symbol I know all too well into the thin metallic paneling, the only true Prothean symbol I know of, the symbol for shadow.

_I know it's a bit sentimental of me, but it just ties the entire thing together._

Finishing up the burn I take a step back and collapse my omni-blade, satisfied that the artistic balance of the skycar was now back in order.

Sighing with an elation I only felt from a job well done I pack up my tools, OSD's and parts I was going to tinker with later. I feel a slight burning on my neck and look behind me to find the sun just starting to peek over the horizon. I stand there for a moment. Just admiring the beauty of the universe before remembering I was on the Asari Homeworld and closing my eyes to forcefully block out what was going to happen when the Reaper's invade in 15 years.

_I have to try and stop it, I owe it to these people to try._

Now mentally depressed, I take the crates full of the leftover parts and junk and walk back into my building to find the attendant yawning as she walked out of the elevator. I step as silently as I can and hug the darker parts of the room to avoid getting noticed.

_I'm not avoiding her, I just think it wise to avoid people who trigger psychotic episodes whenever possible a sound policy._

She rolls her neck and sits down at her desk with a cup of what I could only guess was coffee as I rush-walk into the hallway and up to my apartment. I fiddle with my omni-tool before the door finally opens and I jump inside before re-locking it.

I drop the crates off to the side and sigh in relief before walking into the bathroom to take a quick shower.

Afterwards, I dress in clean clothes and cook another one of my omelets before transforming my bed back into a couch and sitting down to eat while watching the morning news.

"Welcome to the Thessia News Network, I'm Telia T'vani. The top story this morning, a well known Volus merchant is found incapacitated in an alleyway. When interviewed by an officer he is reported to be saying, 'What took you so long, I was stuck on my back for six hours you lazy Asari'"

I stop eating and visualize a Volus stuck on his back like a turtle, cursing and yelling out for help while his breather mask franticly hisses from him panicking. I bursting out laughing.

"HAHAHAHA! HAHAHA! OH MY GOD THAT IS HILARIOUS!"

I hold my stomach as I chuckle uncontrollably for five-six minutes before calming down and getting a glass of water. I finish the glass and smile as I sit back down and decide to-

I freeze up as my vision shifts...

* * *

...and I'm walking into a room. I look up from the datapad I'm holding and to my left to find a small desk with a small lamp and some papers on top of it.

_What?_

I look around the room and I see a child's bed and a large window where outside I see children at play, but something is wrong. I think about why I was standing there and I hear a whimper. My ears perk up and I listen in on the sound for a moment, I hear sniffling, someone's crying.

"Who's there?" I whisper cautiously. The crying shifts to sobs and I whip my head to the left as the desk shifts slightly. I walk around it slowly, trying to remember why it seemed so familiar.

_Why do I know this?_

I see a small foot before it's owner pulls it under the desk in fear. I kneel down to look under the desk...

And I see a girl, small, pale, her beautiful brown hair unkempt and loosing its color from the clear malnourishment she was suffering. Her deep brown eyes filled with pain and fear as I grab her weak and fragile arm and yank her out of her hiding space. I drag her against her and my own will towards the bed.

"NO! NONONO! Please!" She screams as two other men take her and tie restraints around her wrists and ankles before tying her to the bed.

"This is necessary," I hear myself whisper shakily as I take out a syringe and move towards the bed while tapping the air bubbles out of the liquid. "the Illusive Man wants us to succeed." I look the girl in the eye and I can see her pleading me to stop it, to stop it all, and I can feel myself start to hesitate, "The Illusive Man needs progress." I whisper as I tear my eyes away from hers and focus on the laughter of the children outside before grabbing her arm and quickly injecting the serum.

_No..._

I back up as the girl starts to scream out in her agony and suffering of the drug I know forces the nerves in Humans to over fire, causing beyond unbearable pain. I try and think of a way to help her and I can't, I just can't...

_The Illusive Man might not like it..._

* * *

My vision clears and I fall back against the couch as tears stream down my face and my lip trembles.

_No..._

I can feel my heart start to break at how much suffering I saw in the gi-

...

My eyes widen in absolute shock as I recognize the little girl.

_Jack..._

I can't breath. I clutch my chest in pure empathetic torture from realizing how bad she had it.

_Has it, she's suffering through all that right now._

I feel anger start to boil up at the mere fact that the bastards at the Teltan facility are doing it FOR the Illusive Man.

_THAT FUCKING SON OF A BITCH!_

I clench my fists and feel the new awesome power I just started learning how to control build in my fingertips, then I drop my hands and lower my head as the fact that I can't help her hits me. I look at my hands as regret blurs my vision with tears.

_Even with all this raw power at my fingertips I have no way to help her, to actually save anyone._

I close my eyes, trying to find someone, anyone I could save during my time here.

My mind keeps focusing around Irikah.

_Why? Is it even possible for me to save her? When does she even die?_

I average Kolyat's age in Mass Effect 2 at 19-20 and I figure that he'd have to be young enough to understand the pain without it overwhelming him.

_So he was 9-10 years old when she died? So 2175-76? Which is four/five years from now._

I perk up at the thought I could graduate from AAH before she died, allowing me time, if not much, to track her and Kolyat down and keep them safe from the Batarians.

_I could do that. I really could have a chance at doing that!_

Taking in a deep and calming breath I let it out slowly, giving me my strength back. I think through some other events and find most of them only being relevant in ME1.

_That's too bad, I could do with more goals to keep myself focused._

I swallow nervously before picking up my half-eaten omelet and walking to the kitchen, no-longer feeling up to eating.

_Just another consequence of having a good memory, you loose a lot of long-term moral arguments._

"Scorpio?" I blink and match the synthetic voice to LIA before looking at the time and realizing that it was almost 1000.

"Yes LIA?" I respond quietly, not willing to talk after such a depressing thought.

"There are two local shooting ranges within Armali." She states factually, cold and without emotion like usual.

_Wow, that depresses me even more for some reason._

"Merci LIA, choose the nearest one as my waypoint and start up the skycar, I'll be out in a minute."

"At once Scorpio."

I sigh tiredly and let the last of the morning's events slip my mind as I review how to disassemble and arm my weapons. Satisfied that I remembered the steps I grabbed my weapon cases and armor crate before shutting down the holo-projector, locking my apartment, and walking out through the lobby as discreetly as possible. Out of the corner of my eye I notice the attendant watching something on her omni-tool, but ignore it as I slip by while she's distracted.

_I can't avoid her forever, but for now I'm going to do just that._

I admire the view of the city from my position for a moment, the lights, the atmosphere, hundreds of skycars just flowing through the air without a care.

_It's going to get weirder and weirder living here as time goes on, I can feel lost at moment already, even with my great memory._

Smiling as I remembered how shocking it was to realize I was on the Asari Homeworld, I walk up to and deposit my luggage into the back of my skycar before taking the driver seat and linking my omni-tool into the systems, "LIA, run a system diagnostic."

I watch the lines of code run along the open screen on my omni-tool and hope that I installed everything correctly.

_Last thing I need is another transport hub incident like last time._

*beep* "Diagnostic complete, 'Personal Shuttle' is running at optimal capacity and is fully fueled." LIA reports like the simple VI she is.

_It is getting a little annoying to talk with her, it's like speaking to Siri back home, too impersonal._

Shrugging reluctantly, I select the preset coordinates and activate the autopilot. I hear the engine start up with a light humming before the momentum shifts and I'm pushed into my seat for a second as the skycar accelerates to top speed at the same moment the motion dampeners kick in. The resulting release of pressure on my body allows me to sigh happily that everything was going a lot smoother then I expected.

_I am SO glad I bought that dampener, definitely worth it._

While sitting back comfortably I think about what I needed to get done by 2176 and frown in concentration as I remember how unstable the situation on Thessia was becoming.

_I mean, I destroyed a massive chunk of income from the Blue-Suns within half an hour! It's going to allow a lot of changes to happen and fast. I doubt they can recover as easily due to the already competitive Eclipse sisters that roam around Asari space. So since the Blue-Suns are going to most likely be pushed out of the local underground markets, a vacuum of power will allow the Eclipse to take over the majority of the profits. I seriously hope that doesn't change anything major in the timeline, I can't handle an entire organization without massive assistance._

I'm knocked out of my thoughts as the skycar shifts its direction and lands just outside a large building. I step out and grab my items before looking up as LIA parks my skycar for me to see something I wasn't expecting.

_Isn't the Armali Armax Arena on the Citadel?_

I stare at the large triple 'A' sign for a moment longer before I shrug and walk into the shooting range.

_I'll ask the owner about it when I meet them._

Looking around I step through a lobby of some sort and am immediately assaulted by hundreds of rounds being fired at uneven intervals. I cringe at the noise before my ears adapt naturally to the increased feedback and blocked it out.

_God, if I wasn't awake before I sure am now!_

Shaking my head clear I look down the line and watch as over two dozen people all test their aim at the range with all sorts of weapons. I watch one Asari in particular stand straight, facing away from the target before spinning around and firing three quick-shots into the holographic target. One in the gut, one in the heart, one in the head.

_Impressive._

I look at her and nod as she notices me, she scoffs before turning back to her target.

_Oh, well, that's a bit rude._

I slowly walk down the line and notice that everyone in the room was Asari.

_Oh great, I'm the only technically male person here, this is going to get awkward really fast._

"Welcome to AAA, the Armali Academic Arena! I am Feirna Yone, owner." I turn quickly to my left at hearing the strangely high-pitched duel-toned voice and find a Drell standing there, smiling brightly. I realize quickly as she looks me over that she was a FEMALE Drell and try not to stare at her in shock.

_This is something I've never seen before, I'd better commit this to permanent memory._

I smile at her and bow as well as I can without dropping my cases and crate. I notice she does as well and I scan her form as we stand up straight again. She's wearing a tight, leather, body suit with an open collar that accents her frame perfectly. Her smooth yet scaly skin was a glowing deep orange that shined in the artificial light as if it's oiled. My eyes shift to her head and I find it sectioned off with the creases in her scalp to look strangely curved outwards, but without the rough edges I notice from the males of the species. Her face is rounded and bright, her frills are less prominent and fold into her cheeks gracefully. Even the light lines that naturally form in her facial scales seem to reflect a softer image and draw your attention to her wide, inescapably deep and dark eyes.

_By my definition, she is beautiful._

I smile brightly and speak as loudly as needed over the resounding gunfire, "Greeting Feirna, my name is Scorpio, I'm here looking for someone to teach me how to properly fire my weapons and maybe give me some pointers in combat."

She nods, "Ah hello Scorpio, I've been known to train many people in the art of Enkre, or 'swift fire'. For what purpose do you require training?"

I feel my arms start to tire and shift my load around slightly to get a better grip before saying, "I'm working on honing my biotics and need something to compound with them in case I have need of stealth instead of power."

_I really do, after what happened with the Turian in the ally and the Blue-Suns incident I need to know all I can about firing a gun._

She frowns slightly before blinking both her eyelids and waving to me to follow as she turns to walk down the line. "I can teach you, though I will require compensation for my services." She quickly corrects the posture of one of the Asari with two taps to the arm. "I am curious as to where you are training to hone your biotics." She lightly kicks the back of one of the Asari's knees and as a result the Asari shifts to compensate and fires a perfect head-shot. She nods appreciatively to Feirna.

"I'm actually not sure if it's known to many yet but I'm enrolled into AAH." I say cautiously, suddenly nervous about why all the Asari were training here.

At the exact moment the words left my mouth every Asari down the line stopped firing and turned to stare at me in shock.

_Ok, that isn't creepy at all._

"Back it your fire training! A true Huntress is never distracted!" Feirna shouts to everyone down the line. Instantly they all turn back and start their firing once more. Fierna turns and walks further down the line and I follow, now even more nervous then before. "These Asari are here under-going their second year of firearms training at AAH, I privately contract through them since my shooting range is the closest and allows for single and multiple situational training that AAH doesn't actually cover at their facilities." She comments while lifting another Asari's rifle an inch higher.

_Huh, well that's a strange coincidence._

She stops and turns to look at me, "I had heard rumors about an Alien enrolling at the academy, I didn't know they chose a Human." I notice a question in her tone and look at her in expectation. She raises a sharp eyebrow, "I am wondering if what they say is true, that you are also a Natural Biotic and as such require the same training as Asari undergo." I think for a moment before nodding discreetly. She smiles and hurriedly walks down the rest of the line and up to a security gate.

_Ok, well now I know how rare it is._

I walk as fast as I can and get up to the gate just as she opens it with her omni-tool and walks inside. She turns and waves me forward. I walk in and jump as the gate slams shut behind me.

_Holy shit._

A barrier activates and suddenly all the noise from the gunfire is cut off and I sigh in relief as my ears stop ringing. I look up and my eyes widen in shock.

_Holy shit._

I look around the massive room filled with racks and racks of weapons and I recognize barely ten percent of the models.

_My god..._

I step forward and follow Feirna in my own revere at the beyond massive collection of weapons. I even see a Geth pulse rifle inside a barrier casing in one of the outer-walls.

"There is also my work designing weapons for the Council Spectre Requisitions officer." She comments as she brushes a hand over a massively modified sniper rifle that's mounted on one of the lower racks.

I look around the room in absolute awe for another second before I almost bump into Feirna as she stops just before a weapons modding table where I notice a Turian was working on a black assault rifle that I recognize as an HMWA II by the look of the discolored grips on the stock.

...

_I just realized I have no idea how I know that._

"So, what do you think about my collection." Feirna asks proudly.

I watch her for a moment before letting my intense grin through, "It's absolutely amazing! I've never seen so many high-end weapons in one place before!"

She laughs with her duel toned light voice and shakes her head at my enthusiasm.

"It seems as if even the Human's can't resist the allure of the HM series." We stop for a moment and I look past her as she turns and I watch as the Turian lifts his rifle up to the light.

_That voice..._

I scan him and notice he was wearing a familiar set of armor, something I've seen before. The light reflects across his brown skin and is lost as it passes by a red band of light wrapping around the collar of the epic-looking armor.

"Don't discredit what four-hundred of the highest grade Spectre weapons on the market can do to a person. Even an anti-gun lobbyist would gawk in shock in here!" Feirna chuckled in her own two-toned, soft voice.

_Spectre..._

"I wouldn't doubt it Feirna, well aren't you going to introduce us?" He turned and walked into the light. White pant over dark brown skin and a slight smirk across his face. I blink for a moment and heavily resist my jaw drop.

_Nihlus!_

"Of course Spectre, this is Scorpio, a new recruit in my class and if the Armali gossip is anything to go by the first alien to be accepted into the Armali Academy of the Huntress!" Feirna states excitedly.

_Its Nihlus! Holy Goddess!_

"Ahh, a pleasure, although I was under the impression that only naturally trained biotics were able to enroll." Nihlus says curiously. I'm stuck in absolute shock so I simply nodded. I stare at him for a few more seconds.

_Say something you moron!_

Blinking rapidly I finally found my voice, "They do, I'm the only human in existence to have naturally strong abilities in biotics. I don't need an amp so they agreed to train me."

_This is unprecedentedly awesome!_

"How is that possible? I was under the impression that only Asari could become natural biotics without extreme genetic modification." Nihlus asks conversationally.

I sigh in slight exasperation.

_I was hoping to avoid this conversation._

"That's true, but I'm a special case it seems. I only learned about my biotics recently. Apparently my nodes were dormant for most of my life, and only when I was forced into extreme danger were they able to activate."I say as calmly as I can manage.

_It is hard lying to him, a Spectre, about my past. He's just so awesome. If I don't lie I'll be sent to an insane asylum. What did Jeilus say? I remember something about how my nodes numbering in the millions? Maybe I imagined that._

That's when I remembered, I had been called by the hospital two days ago at two in the morning and was advised via LIA that my test results came back, that I didn't authorize, and they figured out that I was essentially riddled with nodes to the point that my spinal cord was nearly non-existent beyond the vertebrae and a few unaltered strings of neural fibers. I was naturally shocked and absolutely freaked out by what that meant. Jeilus had told LIA that I was not only the most powerful biotic outside of the T'soni's estate, but that I was worth over five million credits in eezo.

_That was absolutely shocking as all hell. Maybe I can pawn my nodes if I ever go broke._

Thinking about the surgery involved in such a procedure I dismissed the idea immediately.

_I never asked to become a biotic, but it seems that whatever brought me here wanted me to be the strongest, so I won't deny it. I'll embrace it and use it to better the galaxy. God did that sound pathetically stereotypical!_

"I have some knowledge in Asari biotics, how many do your nodes number in?" Nihlus's skeptical voice cut me out of my thoughts.

I blink and refocus my thoughts, "The tests came back a few days ago, apparently my nodes number in over a million. It shocked everyone who was doing the tests. They even re-did the results to avoid errors. It wasn't an error."

Both of his eye-plates raise and his mandibles twitched wide in I would assume shock. "Your serious? Your nodes number in over a million?!" He asks in evident shock.

_Unfortunately yes._

I nod and he does a strange Turian version of a whistle. "You do realize that any normal Human Biotic only numbers in the hundred thousand range? And that most Asari only number in the 500-800 thousand range?" He asks in moderate exasperation. I nod, even though this was news to me.

_I didn't think biotics had THAT many nodes in their nervous systems._

He crosses his arms over his armored chest and shakes his head, "Kid, you're officially going to need therapy, because that's just insane! A million nodes?! If you actually end up honing those biotics to a fine point your going to be so powerful that the Matriarchs are going to try and kill you out of petty jealousy!" He and Feirna burst out laughing and I had to fake a laugh of my own like usual.

"Yeah..." I say quietly while trying to wrap my head around it.

_I'm the most powerful biotic in human existence? I mean I assumed that but... oh I hope I can learn how to control this 'gift' before it turns into a death sentence._

Thinking about how some young Asari accidentally kill themselves trying to hone their biotics too quickly I shudder at the thought of what a biotic detonation would do to me if it happened.

_With the amount of eezo I have it'll probably destroy three city blocks along with me._

The laughter died down as Feirna seems to remember to introduce Nihlus. "Oh! Scorpio, this is Spectre Agent Nihlus, he's working for the Citadel counsel at the moment in overseeing activities on Thessia. After that Matriarch's daughter was attacked in an alley and that Turian General was murdered he's been investigating the incident." My heart dropped.

_Investigating... oh crap. He can't know! No he doesn't even know about ME how can he know? What's going to happen when he finds out and I don't tell him though? God damn it!_

I bow in greeting and watch him for a second.

_Well, he is quite honorable from what I know about him, maybe I can get him to understand my situation?_

Thinking about how he agrees that humans would be excellent in the Spectres I decide to tell him and try to get him to understand.

_Better get this over with._

My logical side was screaming at me not to tell him and my emotional side was scared to death so I went with my gut feeling, and my gut feeling said I should trust him. "It's a pleasure Nihlus, oh and would you mind meeting me at my apartment tomorrow morning? I have some information you might want to look at involving that incident."

His features focus as his gaze turns to study me intently. Reading his alien expressions I see confusion cross his face. "What do you mean by, _information_?" He asks suspiciously.

I frown slightly and bring my voice into a serious tone before remembering something and speaking, "The truth, is not what is publicized, but what lurks in the shadows, in the dark corners of people's hearts. The truth, is always known to the wicked and never seen by the innocent. The truth Nihlus, is something beyond unknown to both this world and the galaxy at large." His frown lifts and he blinks at me as I finish, "That's all I can say. I do hope you will come. Here's the address." I send the address to his omni-tool.

He looks at me strangely before locking his rifle onto his back and nodding to Feirna as he walks towards the exit.

_If my memory serves me well, Nihlus was a guy who took precaution and poetic-isms to heart. I seriously hope he doesn't kill me when I tell him._

Feirna taps me on the shoulder, "What was all that about?" I tear my eyes from Nihlus and look at the confused expression on Feirna's face.

I shake my head, "Nothing, let's get back to work, you were going to train me?"

Forgetting the conversation for the moment Feirna smiles widely, "Oh of course, let's get started." She waves me over to the modding table. "Now since you're going to be enrolled at AAH, you don't have to pay for my services."

_Phew, I was starting to worry, I don't need another 50000 credits hanging over my head._

"Now, do you have any weapons specializations you wish to train with? Or do you want an all-out session." She asks as she eyes my cases.

I nod, "I have a Reaper IV sniper rifle and an Edge III pistol I'd like to train with, but I also want to try out the other weapons as well."

She gestures for me to hand her the cases and I do. She opens them and smiles at the red and white weapons before turning towards me, "These are well made, and good starter weapons. Do you have any preference of fighting style?"

I think about it for a moment before saying, "I'm able to fight through a firefight if needed, although I would rather fight from stealth." She stops and turns towards me, a strange look in her eye.

I tilt my head and raise an eyebrow while I watch her, trying to figure out what she was thinking.

She blinks and smiles before saying, "You remind me of my cousin, willing to fight a horde but brings the most damage from the shadows." She sighs before handing me the cases. "Do you own any armor? This will require it indefinitely." She asks seriously.

I incline my head to the crate I'm carrying, "It's in the box."

She frowns, "Good, get it on and meet me at the range in five minutes. Lets see how well you can do." She turns and walks away, leaving me slightly worried for my safety.

_This is going to be interesting._

Dropping my load with a sigh of relief from finally getting the feeling back into my arms, i crack the seal and trow on my armor before activating my weapons and clamping them onto the magnetic strips along the back and sides of my armor.

_I really hope I can learn this quickly, I have a strange feeling things are going to get dangerous, fast._

Walking back out to the main room I notice half of the Asari were standing around at the far side of the range, right behind Feirna.

_Oh, great, a crowd. Like I'm not nervous as it is._

I take a deep breath as I approach, Feirna stares at me for a moment before shaking her head and pointing at station two. I walk into the booth nervously and take a breath before thinking about all the times I've embarrassed myself in public...

...

_Wow I really haven't before. This is going to be bad, I know it._

"Scorpio, arm yourself with your sniper rifle." Feirna commands. I reach over my left shoulder and grip the handle of my sniper rifle before pulling it out of its lock and gripping it in me hands.

I look down at it and flip the safety off before quickly checking the sights and adjusting it like I used to with my father's rifle whenever he was on leave.

I hear Feirna tapping on her omni-tool and a target pops up down range with a five second timer to the right of me.

_Oh shit!_

Taking the sights up to my eye I steady my stance and aim just left of the heart. *BLAM* I don't watch it hit as I shift two degrees higher and fire just slightly higher and to the right of the forehead a second later. *BLAM* I hear the last second hit and quickly fire towards the holo-graphic weapon aiming at me. *BLAM* *BEEP!* I don't check the target as I close my eyes and finally breath again.

_I hope I did well, god my heart is beating out of my chest!_

I hear the target roll forwards and stop before I open my eyes to gawk at the perfect head-shot, heart-shot, and shattered rifle in the hologram's hand.

...

I close my mouth and turn around to find everyone gawking at me like I did a quadruple back-flip and landed as a Volus. A few of them breath 'Goddess' as the rest blink in shock.

Feirna shakes her head, "Do it again and lets see if it's just luck." I nod silently and turn around, completely wondering if it was a fluke.

_I've never shot a gun in my life! I know my armor takes a lot of the impact of the kick-back but I shouldn't be able to shoot this well!_

The target re-sets at the far end as I turn and by the time I fire the first time the timer is at 3 seconds. *BLAM* *BLAM* *BLAM* *BEEP!* It rolls up to me and I'm again shocked with everyone that it's three perfect shots, this time the last one was through the elbow of the hologram's aiming arm, PAST the gun.

_Damn!_

I smile and turn around to find Feirna frowning dangerously and half of the Asari exchanging credits.

_So apparently people are betting against me? Huh, I would to._

"Do it again, but this time lets have it moving." Feirna states in a violent tone.

_I have no idea why this is happening, but I need to figure it out._

Turning around, I grip the rifle in my hands and roll my firing shoulder.

_For some reason I just feel really good when holding this sniper rifle._

I look down at it and smile before sighting it again to make sure it's perfect and getting into position. The target pops into play and I throw my rifle up and immediately notice the sporadic movement of the target. I grip the rifle tightly and clench my teeth as I lead it and fire off three shots before the rifle overheats. *BLAM* *BLAM* *BLAM* *BEEP!*

_I missed, I already know it._

The target flies forward and stops.

...

_WHAT THE HELL!_

"OK, you can stop hitting the target at any time!" Feirna shouts from behind me.

"I have no idea how the hell I'm doing this!" I shout as I turn away from my third perfect round of shots.

Everyone in the crowd shakes their heads and Feirna pinches the bridge of her nose, "Ok, so you're a natural biotic AND a naturally perfect shot with a sniper rifle." She sighs and looks at me with a frustrated smirk, "Now lets see how you do with a pistol at this range." My eyes grow wide.

_Oh crap, well I DID coin the saying, 'Snipe with a pistol, shoot with a sniper rifle.' After playing COD for a hundred hours so I guess I'm going to have to learn how to live up to that at some point, I just never expected to do in in real life._

I take a deep breath and swap to my pistol, I fumble with the light-weight firearm and finally find the safety switch before nervously aiming it down-range and groaning at how poor the sighting on the pistol is.

_This is never going to work._

The target pops up and I turn and fire the pistol with my left hand while the other clenches into a fist at my side, I fire eight shots before the timer runs out.

_I lost, I didn't hit anything._

The target zooms up to the front, four shots hit the target, one in the shoulder, one in the chest, one in the leg, the last hit right in the middle of the throat.

_Huh, not bad._

"This is getting to be a bit too much Scorpio, what's going on?" Feirna asks suspiciously.

I turn to respond before I stop and look at the corner of my sight and see a small meter showing the weapon I'm holding and how heated it is.

_OH! My god I'm an idiot! I left the Target Assist function of my suit on!_

I face-palm and call up my omni-tool before deactivating the function and saying, "Ok, NOW lets try this again, regular unmoving target with the sniper rifle."

Feirna looks at me strangely but re-sets it.

_Now lets see how good I really am._

I watch the target pop up, *BLAM* *BLAM* *BLAM* *BEEP!* The target rolls up and I tilt my head to the side, a bit confused. I hit all my targets true, if a bit off, but there were a total of four shots in the target.

_What the hell?_

Feirna walks up and stares at the shots for a moment before saying, "Either you have some kind of gift or this rifle and you just match perfectly because this is amazingly rare." She turns to me, "Your rifle discharged some heat into one of the shots, curving it off coarse while firing a second automaticly," She points at the one that shattered the ankle of the hologram. "but allowing you to fire four shots instead of three. I have a few rifles that have been known to do this but only every eight hundred shots or so. What did you do with your omni-tool right before this round?"

I look at her while resting the rifle comfortably in my hands, "I deactivated the aim-assist on my suit, it was on during the first four rounds and I didn't notice until after the pistol one." I shrug and roll my shoulders loosely.

Feirna scowls at me before smiling, "I knew you had some sort of advantage, but even without it you did pretty well!" She points at the holo. "One to the chest, one through the left eye, one in the shoulder and lastly the curved shot to the ankle which was pure luck. You'd have surprised me if you even hit the target, but you blew my predictions WAY out the window."

I shrink into myself and blush from behind the mask.

_I really didn't think I would do too well, apparently I like proving myself wrong._

Feirna slaps me on the shoulder and yells at everyone to get back to their practice before having me try the same again, but with the pistol. I don't even hit the target after ten shots. "Well, that's what happens. Technology can make a pro out of a rookie in absolutely no time." Feirna says before adjusting my pose to be aiming with two hands in a slightly hunched over pose and re-setting the target.

*BLAM* *BLAM* *BLAM* I look up as the target comes closer and nod in satisfaction at the three holes in the holo's chest region.

I turn around and Feirna has an 'I told you so' look in her eyes. "Good, keep practicing with the pistol and you'll be sniping with it in no-time." I stifle a laugh and smile from behind my mask just as she shoves an assault rifle in my hands and tells me to fire it.

I stare at the AR like it was an alien device before tapping the safety off and aiming it down range. The target pops up and I pull the trigger and wince as the but machine guns into my shoulder, throwing my aim off so bad Feirna hits the deck.

_Oh... I am not an AR person._

I cringe at the furious look on Feirna's face, "Sorry, I haven't handled an assault rifle before."

She huffs before ripping it out of my hands and shoving a shotgun into my hands which I nearly drop right away from the weight different. "I know, I could tell when you nearly sprayed bullets all over my nice clean ceiling! Try the Shotgun and this time try to hit the target, please?" She says in a dangerous tone. I just nod and turn back to the range.

The target zooms up to a closer distance and I am about to fire when I stop.

_I know how to do this._

I lower the shotgun and turn off the timer before delving into my memories to find what I meant. After a few seconds I remember something about keeping your arms solid enough to avoid breaking your nose, aim the butt of the gun away from your abdomen, and the last tip I can remember is something about aiming slightly higher then the mid-section for maximum... shredding... I shiver at the thought, but I take my own advice to heart and aim high and keep the kick-back in control.

I look directly down the sights for a second before aiming and-

*BANG!*

"OH! Fuck!" *cough* *cough*

I drop the gun and jump as it almost hits my foot before clenching my ribs where the butt of the shotgun hit.

_God damn those things have a heavy kick-back!_

"Ok, now that you know the kick-back on the thing, fire it again." Feirna says as if I didn't even get hurt.

I stare at her for a moment before sighing and grabbing the shotgun. I aim it at a more controllable angle and fire as the target pops up.

*BLAM*

I wince as the kick-back nearly dis-locates my shoulder and look up to see I completely missed. I look back at Feirna and she shakes her head, "You said you only liked the pistols and sniper rifles and you were right. Most beginners at least hit the target, even when they screw up." She sighs as I watch her for the next set of instructions.

She looks at the range, then takes the shotgun from me and tells me to keep practicing with the pistol until I can make a perfect head-shot at 10 meters. I nod, excepting her challenge as she walks off to coach an Asari girl struggling with an assault rifle.

_I definitely need A LOT more practice and coaching if I want to improve on the pistol. I'm not sure how, but when I hold the SR it just feels right. I know I always favored them in FPS's and other shooter games, but I didn't think anything about actually shooting a sniper rifle in real life until after I 'fell' into the Mass Effect Universe._

Turning back to the range, I alter the distance to 10 meters and start firing. *BLAM* *BLAM* *BLAM*

* * *

1700hrs

"I told you to put the safety ON when you lock your weapons into place." Feirna scolds me for the seventh time as I lay against a stack of crates with my left foot laying above my heart to slow the bleeding.

I wince in pain as she disinfects the grazing I took from my pistol going off from my hip. "I know, and you're talking to a person with a near-perfect memory and a pension to not learning from other people's experiences."

She shakes her head and applies a thin layer of medi-gel to the inside of my foot, forcing me to hold my breath until the stinging subsided. I sigh out a breath of relief as nearly all feeling in that part of my foot is taken away from the numbing agent included in every formula of medi-gel.

She grabs some cloth and I stop her, "If I'm going to learn from my mistake I'm going to need to do this on my own." I say truthfully. She smirks and hands me the cloth, I pocket it and slip my foot into my civilian set of boots before buckling it up and looking back to Feirna as she shakes her head in exasperation. I roll my eyes from and test out the foot to realize it felt nearly fine, a little numb, but almost completely normal.

_Huh, wonders of modern medicine._

I place my weapons into their cases and throw my armor into pieces into the crate, "Thanks for the lesson Feirna, same time next week?"

She looks at me as I hold my cargo in front of her as if I was drunk, "No absolutely not! I am not dealing with you purposely injuring yourself for attention every week! My heart couldn't take it."

I laugh at her sarcasm, "Yeah, I'd rather avoid this happening again as well. See you next week Feirna." We bow respectfully towards each other.

_She's a good person, a bit intense, but good-hearted, and a wicked shot. She head-shotted a holo at 50 meters!_

Walking past her and through the lobby, I exit the building to notice the sky was starting to darken.

_I've got to get back to my place and quickly shower before picking up Liara._

I call up my omni-tool and am about to tell LIA to get my skycar when it parks right in front of me.

_Oh, well, thanks LIA._

I jump in and quickly punch the coordinates for my apartment and sitting back in a slight panic as I see it's almost 1730.

_Come on, come on, speed up! Huh, this is the first time I actually WANT this damn thing to go faster._

* * *

Flowers, bright, colorful, full of life. A sea of reds, blues, yellows, and nearly every combination of the three. Song birds sing their evening songs from the trees, the air mirroring their sweet yet empty sounds. They knew that this was to be the last sunny day before the cool evenings set in, before the flowers stopped blooming, before the trees are stripped bare like they always are at the end of the year.

A figure, small and quiet, greets them all for one last time. Thousands of fluttering wings beat against the trees as the figure moves into the garden and chooses one small blue flower from the millions around her to be her company for the evening, her blue fingers lightly grasping along the green stem as the her other hand procured a small ceremonial pair of scissors and snipped the base of the stem. The delicate blue flower is lifted above it's paired brothers and sisters of the garden and deposited inside a glass case, its destiny was to outlive its brethren, to live forever as part of her yearly ritual on her birthday to save a bit of life to remind her that all life was worth saving.

She smiles and sits on the edge of a rock that was placed on a small cliff that allowed her to overlook the sea. Her fingers trace the spot of the rock where she carved her initials with her mother when she was twelve. They had just moved from her mother's apartment that sat beside a park and the first thing they did was plant hundreds of the rarest Thessian flowers on a hill and build the now flourishing garden in which she sat today.

Liara breathed in the salty sea air and smiled at how it tickled her nose. She wrote her dissertation while listening to the birds care to their young in the spring. She has had so many beautiful memories in this place that even she could not even begin to record and catalog all of them.

Liara closes her eyes and sighs with equal happiness and sadness, if she was approved for the Detriop dig expedition then she might not be able to spend entire years in this place, but it is small in comparison to visiting a real Prothean ruin and possibly finding the proof she needs to finally be recognized in the academic community.

"Liara? It is late and I did not see you enter the gardens." Liara turned slightly to find her long-time friend and mentor, Shiala, standing beside her.

Liara avoids Shiala's eye and instead looks out to the sea in hopes Shiala would not pick up on her discomfort.

"We have a long tradition, on entering the garden and plucking the one flower together, the simple fact that you have done this without me shows how discomforted you are by my presence." Shiala wisely deduces.

Liara looks down sadly, she did not mean to break their long-standing eighty year old tradition. Out of personal guilt of letting down her only friend she has ever had, she looks up and lets her personal dilemma become open to the knowing eyes of Shiala.

_I am a fool if I thought it right, or even possible, to exclude this evenings events from her watchful eye. I wish I had not been wrapped up in the guilt of not asking her to dinner instead of Scorpio, and had seen the error in my ways._

Shiala's eyes widen and she watches Liara in shock, she had not anticipated such an event. "Liara? You, you have a date to dinner?"

Liara's eyes widen and she quickly jumps up to her feet to deny it, "No! No I do not! I am simply having my birthday dinner with Scorpio!" Liara quickly covers her mouth, she spoke to much.

_Damn my nervous ramblings!_

Shiala blinks in even more shock then before, she didn't anticipate any of this, least of all a socially awkward Human whom Liara hadn't even known for more than a week taking her place in comforting Liara during the annual birthday dinner to which Benesia couldn't attend due to some reason or another. "I see..." She says impulsively, not sure how to even respond to the situation.

Liara cringes at the sound and worriedly searches Shiala's eyes for something, anything that indicated their friendship was still intact. She sees confusion, and not much else.

_Have I messed up that much? That now my best friend was at a loss for words at how horrid my actions had been?_

"I...'' Shiala was speechless, she did not think Liara would find the time to begin her wild maiden years before she was already into her second century. How Liara was able to finally break through her own personal nervousness and agree to dine with someone she does not entirely know is beyond her capability of understanding.

Liara feels tears come to her eyes, she has ruined her friendship for one adventurous night with an extremely intriguing Human whom was a total stranger to her.

Shiala, finally able to come to peace with her inner turmoil, notices Liara's silent weeping and quickly wraps her arms around her in an effort to comfort her, "Shh, Shh, everything is alright Liara, I am not mad, it is just surprising that you are going to dine with a stranger." She lightly speaks to Liara as she holds her.

"I have betrayed our friendship for a stranger, i am a fool!" Liara declares to the world as she sobs into Shiala's silk dress.

Shiala rubs Liara's back and pulls away enough to plant a light kiss upon her forehead, "You have not, you are simply growing up and I must accept that."

Liara blinks the last of her tears away, now seeing how she miss-took Shiala's confused silence for anger and resentment. "I love you Shiala."

Shiala smiles at the young child she once dragged out of her room and forced to plant a tree daily just so she would not end up as pale as the snow, "And I you, young one." They hug each-other tightly, now knowing why old friendships never die.

Liara departs the gardens, content with her situation as she quickly rushes through the Mansion and into her room to change into the dress she saved for the evening.

_Oh, I only have twenty minutes!_

She quickly undresses and starts tying the blue and green silk bands around herself, slowly forming a tight, breathable, fabric that barely covered her person. Next she wraps herself in two thin sheets of light purple, allowing the vibrant blue and green silk to blend with her light-blue skin and allow it to shine through under the correct lighting, she keeps it together using a braided belt of polyester and cotton strips of azure blue fabric that ties around her thin waist and thins out as it snakes through the fabric and up past her chest before V-ing out to create a tasteful amount of cleavage. Lastly she puts on Thessian-blue 92 lipstick that had a hint of eezo in it so it glowed ever so slightly, then she unseals the preservation case that held the one tiny blue flower she picked and strings it into the collar of her dress, making the entire outfit that Shiala says makes Liara as sexy as the Goddess herself work.

She bought this twenty years ago for me, and at the time I refused to wear it since I found no use for it, not however it is perfect for the situation.

Checking the time she gasps that it had been thirty minutes and quickly grabs her one pair of dress shoes she has and carefully running through the halls of the mansion, extremely aware that if she tripped, her dress would most-likely unfurl and she's by laying naked in a pile of ribbons and see-through fabric.

She makes it to the gate to find all the huntresses surrounding someone that had landed recently. Liara quickly puts on her shoes and rushes over as she notices it was Scorpio.

"...was invited here by Liara! I'm supposed to take her to her birthday dinner!" She hears Scorpio shout as she pushes her way through the wall of huntresses and finally into the middle of the circle.

"Scorpio!" She shouts.

The captain turns and immediately moves to call off her forces as she recognizes Liara. "Fall off! I am sorry Ms. T'soni, I was under the impression that you had decided to not go to dinner."

Liara frowns at the captain, she knew she was late but not THAT late, "I was running late captain, you are dismissed." She focuses on Scorpio and smiles as she makes eye contact and sees unkempt desire brimming in his deep brown eyes.

_So the dress DOES make me as beautiful as the Goddess herself._

She folds her hands in front of her to avoid fidgeting and takes in a shaky breath as she notices the formal attire Scorpio was wearing. He was wearing black pants with what looks like a black button-less suit and a white shirt underneath. She notices a gleam off the white cuffs at his wrists and notice silver scorpions were his cuff-links.

"You look absolutely beyond the beauty of the Goddess herself Liara." Scorpio says breathlessly.

She blushes and looks away for a moment before looking him in the eye and saying, "You look quite handsome yourself Scorpio." Something catches her eye and she looks past him to find a black skycar with a glowing silver scorpion on the driver-side door and to her surprise the Prothean symbol for shadow etched into the back. "Is that your skycar?" She asks almost in awe of such a change since last time she saw him he was taking a shuttle.

He turns around and walks up to the side of the skycar and leans against it with a smirk on his face, "Yep, built it myself, you like?"

She nods and approaches the Prothean symbol before tracing it and looking at Scorpio, "Yes, its is aesthetically pleasing to look at and I understand why you chose the symbol for shadow as well, a perfect match for the skycar."

_His surprising knowledge of the Protheans is quite interesting._

"Well, our reservations are for 1830 and it's already 1810 so we'll have to hurry if we're going to make them." Scorpio comments while opening up the skycar using a deep red omni-tool.

Liara doesn't acknowledge it and just steps into the passenger seat before sitting back to try and calm her fraying nerves.

_Why am I so nervous?_

The skycar lifts off the ground and she gets ready to grip onto the seat for dear life as it accelerates to top speed. She opens her eyes and notices that even though they were moving extremely quickly there wasn't an overwhelming pressure that forced her into her seat. She looks at Scorpio and notices him smirking while concentrating on something on his omni-tool.

_This is already turning out to be tremendously different than years prior._

"Liara? You alright?" Scorpio asks as she notices she was staring off into distance for quite some time.

Liara blinks and nods, her introvert nature automatically taking over as she steps into unfamiliar territory. She hears Scorpio sigh and she looks out the windshield to find the sun setting in it's naturally fantistic fashion. She's reminded of the first day she met Scorpio, how she went out of her way to help a stranger and ended up being flattered into accepting a date.

_No! This is not a date! I am just going out with a new friend on my birthday to a luxurious restaurant._

She sighed worriedly as she realizes she WAS going out on a date. She starts nervously fidgeting with her dress and has to stop herself from re-doing one of the knots that held the entire dress together.

_Stop it! You are being rude!_

She lowers her head in personal shame for a moment before looking up and saying, "I am new to these types of things, I apologize in advance if I do something foolish tonight." She watches Scorpio for a reaction.

He shrugs, "Yeah that's about right, I've actually never been on a 'true' date before either." He looks over at her and smiles as she feels her eyes widen.

Unfortunately her curiosity becomes overwhelming and she asks, "What constitutes a date to not be a 'true' date?" She watches Scorpio expectedly.

He looks at her and sighs before speaking, "Being the only person actually talking isn't a date, not knowing the other person is even there is not a date, and usually not seeing the other person throughout the entire evening is also not a date. I've had five cancellations for dinner dates, three people stalk me and decide to drop by only when I'm just falling asleep to tell me that they want to have my children, eight threatening messages about not calling people I don't even know, and last but not least at all I was held at gunpoint for half an hour because the latest stalker didn't like the way I ignored her repeated insistent that I was their future husband." Liara stares at him like her just told her he was dying in ten seconds. "Oh, and all this happened within the last five years, and I only began to actually start dating last month. So that's my track record." He watches her for a reaction and she simply turns and stays silent for a moment.

_Goddess... and I thought Shiala's psychotic ex-girlfriend was bad!_

"You were really held at gunpoint because someone miss-took you as their future husband?" She asks incredulously.

He nods, "Yep, she was a smart, perky, young lady with a pension for hysterical laughter. She actually shot at me twice as I ran for my life and missed. She's spending eight years in the county jail for attempted murder as well as a bunch of other things."

Liara blinks, trying to understand how so much could even happen within five years, "That is unfortunate, you have already had so much bad luck regarding romantic intentions, I am surprised you still wish to look for a life companion."

Scorpio laughs, "I know, its like there's nothing stopping me from finding that perfect woman to marry and spend the rest of my life with. I think about my past transgressions as just, bad luck on my part. For some reason I attract the crazy people." he smirks at her and Liara nods in agreement.

_I barely know him and already we are talking about relationships, this is intriguing._

The skycar lurches and slows as it descends onto a landing pad built into the side of a skyscraper. Sherilun, one of the most prestigious Asarian-based restaurants in all of Thessia. Matriarchs met diplomates to discuss trade deals here, celebrities were waited on by their collegues in the service industry, and apparently a hot-spot for those with enough connections and influence to get reservations twenty years in advance.

Liara and Scorpio walk past the horde of people waiting for a chance at getting inside, or just to see one of the extremely important people that dined inside. Liara nods to the concierge, an Asari who has worked for Sherilun for over six decades and recognizes Liara instantly. "Welcome Ms. T'soni, is this your guest for the evening?" She eyes Scorpio suspisciously.

Liara smiles as politely as she can and nods, "Yes Jernis, he is to replace Shiala this evening."

Jernis scoffs and eyes Scorpio dangerously. Liara looks in shock at Scorpio to find him glaring so dangerously that Jernis' eyes widen in fear the moment their eyes meet and she backs off to let them through.

"R-right this way sir." Jernis stutters out as she grabs two digital menus and quickly lead them through the rooms and into a private outlook that Liara preferred to all other places in the restaurant.

Liara smiles apologetically to Jernis as she quickly departs and they sit down across from one another.

_He is quite intense when he needs to be, It should not surprise me after all he has been through._

"That concierge was really, disapproving of you Scorpio." Liara comments, her curiosity once again over-powering her lack of sociability.

Scorpio nods before looking off to the side, and at the dark skyline, "I'm not welcome in a lot of places, especially since Humans aren't held in high regard anywhere but in Alliance space."

Liara sadly understands, recent actions Humanity has taken to colonizing the Skyllian Verge has stained their reputation, especially after the Batarians left as a result of refusals from the Council to sign off the colonization rights to the minority population Batarians.

"Yes, it is unfortunate." Liara says, she has no opinion about the situation personally, Humanity was a new species learning to cooperate with others, and the Batarians were acting irresponsibly, but neither side were in the wrong.

Scorpio sighs before looking at the menu. Liara already knew what she wanted to eat, it was her favorite dish and only Sherilun seemed able to have it readily available.

"How's your work on the Protheans going? Any breakthroughs?" Scorpio asks, seemingly deciding what he wanted to eat.

Liara looks up for a moment to contemplate the idea, she did have some new theories about the Prothean extinction, but she was uncomfortable discussing them without finding more evidence to support her ideas. "No, not at the moment."

Scorpio nods and looks slightly more uncomfortable as he starts twiddling his thumbs. Liara watches them, interested in how pale Scorpio was, almost as much as she was.

"I do not get out much, though there's a garden at the estate that I like to visit regularly. I am regularly caught up in my studies." Liara says out of impulse.

Scorpio looks at her strangely before smiling, "I don't have too much to do outside either, mostly I'm working on something indoors or just trying to relax before another thing comes up."

Liara nods, a bit uncomfortable talking about what they do to relax. She tries to, but then she just ends up working on something else because she gets restless. Something crosses her mind about Scorpio and she looks at him curiously, "How did you come to know so much about the Protheans?"

Scorpio watches her for a moment, seemingly trying to decide if it was worth explaining, before shrugging and leaning forward, "I found a bit about them online a few years back when another breakthrough came out of the Mars archives, ever since then I've been searching for anything and everything about them. It's extremely interesting, I know a few words and maybe two or three symbols of their language by heart, as you probably saw on the tail of my skycar." Scorpio smiles fondly.

Liara perks up at the possible conversation that they shared interest in, "The entire idea that they were the only civilization around at the time is interesting, even more though that they expanded so effortlessly." She says excitedly, hoping to expand on the topic.

Scorpio nods and folds his hands in front of him before saying, "Elis Terul Dres Merik Svelin, I know a lot about their basic culture and history through their language."

Liara's eyes brighten up and she smiles widely, this was going to be a nice dinner after all, "Koril Melin Selo, Alrian Relik Elosolefik." (This day/night will rise with existence) She speaks what she knows about the language itself, barely a few conjugations and some verb she can barely pronounce.

Scorpio's eyes light up, "Ah, so you do know more then you let on, how interesting. Halon Liara, Mik Ethon Scorpio." (Greetings equal Liara, the empire shows favor to my life Scorpio)

Liara looks at Scorpio apologetically, she reached beyond her limit already, "i only know a little, not much. My apologies, I did not pay close attention to the language itself."

To Liara's surprise Scorpio leans forward and says, "How about I teach you some?" Her eyes widen and he immediately nods enthusiastically.

_I haven't felt this excited since I heard about the Detriop expedition._

"Alright, first thing you should know is that each word can differ in meaning by the slightest shift in pronunciation. For instance, Dirk means world, while Dierk means star. Also, the words I know are severely over-simplified as well. Most likely they will not translate into common languages all that well." Scorpio explains clearly.

Liara smiles, ready to have a great evening as their dishes arrived. A native Thessian fish covered with Salarian spices and broiled inside acidic leaves found on the Krogan Homeworld, now only able to be grown in greenhouses due to the near-extinction of it's species during the Krogan Rebellions. Lastly the fish is flash-cooked while being bathed in Thessian Blue Winterblend wine. She discovered it here after her mother started the tradition of eating out on her birthday, then letting the tradition fall onto Shiala after the third year.

Liara breathes in the sweat and spicy smells of her dish and she hums in approval before looking up to find the exact same thing on Scorpio's plate. Scorpio notices too and they burst out laughing at the strange coincidence before pouring some non-alcoholic wine Scorpio ordered when she wasn't looking and clinging their glasses together before taking a sip.

_This night is going to be... interesting._

* * *

Three hours later they finish up their conversation about the underlining theories about universal expansion and the effect of Dark Energy on organic tissue from biotic use while exiting Sherilun with smiles on their faces. Scorpio calls his skycar and as they speed away towards Liara's estate she thinks up another interesting topic.

"Hey, what do you think about interspecies sexual intercourse?" Scorpio immediately looks at her in shock before seeming to think about it.

Scorpio shrugs before saying, "I have no problem with it, although without proper awareness of each-other's anatomical outlines and proper sterilization, certain problems could arise. Why? what's your stance on interspecies relationships?"

Liara tilts her head and places a finger at her chin before saying, "I, as an Asari have been encouraged to seek mates outside of our species. Although I am not against such a prospect, I do not see the reason for limiting or even shunning people inside of my culture who decide to mate with one of their own kind. It seems a bit prejudicial."

Scorpio nods in understanding, "Yeah, that's usually the case, the people that preach equality being hypocritical to their own people. I've seen enough of that in my own species to cover for every other known race in Council Space."

Liara sighs in unfortunate agreement, she'd been called 'Pureblood' too many times to not agree with his statement.

The skycar lands and Liara turns to Scorpio, "I have had a wonderful evening Scorpio."

He smirks at her and says, "Ul? Telis Eliqu?" (What? What enraptures you?)

Liara frowns playfully and says, "Den Eliquin Melin, Scorpio." (You enrapture me day/night, Scorpio) She kisses his cheek and steps out of the skycar. He nods to her before taking off as Liara waves at his departing skycar.

_This was one of the best birthdays of my life, I hope to see Scorpio again soon._

Turning around she notices something off and looks down to notice her blue flower was missing. She starts to panic as to where it went before she remembers that she gave it to Scorpio as a sign of their friendship during dinner. She smiles as she remembers how difficult it was to explain the reason behind it to Scorpio, she was frazzled for all of three seconds until Scorpio smiled and said that it was beautiful and agrees to their friendship. Liara sighs happily and walks through the gates to the the T'soni estate, content that she did not end up screwing the evening up.

* * *

A/N I have not been held at gunpoint by one of my stalkers, I've been threatened with a knife and that's about it. :) Call be unlucky.


	8. Building a Better VI Part One

A/N This chapter feels a bit fast in my opinion, but what do I know? Sorry for the SIX DAY WAIT for a new chapter, it was finals week and I really hate delving into a self-proclaimed insane mind without at least eight hours of warm up. :)

Read, Review and Enjoy!

* * *

Scorpio's shadowy skycar finally lands outside of his apartment. He stumbles out of it and shakes his head from an adverse reaction to the eezo in his food and clenches his fists, his biotics ignite brightly causing him to yell out in pain of the uncontrolled static discharge.

"AH!" He falls to his knees and pants violently as hundreds of thousands of volts of electricity escapes his body and into the cold hard ground in one flash of light blue energy.

He takes in a shaky breath, "Wa-what just happened?" He asks himself before shaking off his daze and walking inside the apartment building, now feeling particularly exhausted.

As he walks past the receptions desk the Asari attendant looks up and says, "I have a message for you, one Nilus Kryik has asked to reschedule your meeting for the the morning after tomorrow. He explained how he and his mentor had something to get don't and he wasn't going to be able to make it."

Scorpio just nods numbly to her without really acknowledging the message before walking down the hall, opening his door, and falling into his couch as he locks the door and passes out.

* * *

**Flesh melting from bone, people screaming in absolute agony, a burning noise piercing through the screams like a flare, hundreds if not thousands have arrived and I need to stop them, there is no other way. Reaching for my blade I put it up against my throat, "I'm sorry Samara." and slit my throat.**

"Gah!" My eyes open with a start. I stare into the darkness as if it was about to strangle me.

_The nightmares are back, great. What annoys me to no end is how I can't remember anything about the dream afterwards. If it was that important then you'd think I'd be able to remember even a little part of it._

Shaking my head I slowly sit up.

_I haven't had that bad of a nightmare since I predicted that Eli would be in DeadSpace 2._

My eyes widen as the memory of the dream fills my vision...

* * *

People running, corpses changing, darkness everywhere, then I heard Isaac breathing and a plasma shot. His breathing falters, another shot , and another. He's panicking I could tell, then a woman's voice... "Isaac?" His heartbeat quickens and his (my) eyes open to see Eli standing over him (me), watching him. "Eli..."

* * *

My sight returns to normal and I shake the memory from my head.

_God do I hate that. It's useful, but really hellish when I remember the bad thoughts. At first I thought I was insane when I started remembering that, now I think I'm just sensitive. Enough of them have predicted my own future that I've started to wonder if they aren't from some higher power._

I scoff as the thought crosses my mind.

_Higher power, I wish. At least with that I wouldn't feel annoyed by them. I'd be honored._

I sit up off of my couch and look at the lack of sun outside the one window above the futuristic oven. I yawn tiredly as the memories of what I did last night rush through my mind.

_Liara was stunning, not to say she wasn't beautiful before she put on the extremely delicate and expensive-looking dress, but it did her some good to boost her self confidence if only a little._

Stretch my arms I notice I'm still in my armor and remember the other important part of the evening, Liara gave me a flower.

_I didn't understand that at first, but after she explained how it represented a budding friendship I took it as a good sign._

I lift the small blue Thessian wildflower out of my pocket and smile at the strangely velvet and coarse peddles that reminded me of a rose-sunflower hybrid I saw online once.

"There is nothing more innocent then a flower first in bloom, leaves soft to the touch, stem thin and easily consumed, by the other plants in bloom." I quote from a poem a classmate wrote while I was in a poetry coarse in college.

_I know exactly what he means now. Well, I knew back then but now it means something to me._

I walk into the kitchen and pour a small glass of water before placing the flower in it and setting it on the windowsill. I notice how dark it is outside and call up my omni-tool to see it's 0113. At that moment an automated message pops up on the screen saying that the program 'LIA' had an error and needs to be restored. I frown at the message before closing it and bringing up my contacts.

_The only person I know who can fix a VI is the person who built it._

I select Seila's number and an options menu asks what I would like to do, call her, message her, or video chat. I almost hit video chat before I look at the time again and figure that she'd still be in bed, or just asleep.

_Ok, so what am I going to do for five hours?_

I decide to watch another holo-movie while eating breakfast and close down my omni-tool.

_Well, an hour of sleep is better than no sleep. It's definitely better than anything I got for the first month after the 'incident' with Sarah back home. Hmm... How am I going to describe what happened to me when I was stabbed and sub-sequentially thrown into this place? Carbuncled? I'm not even sure what that means, lets just go with Transported._

I decide to change out of my Illusive Man suit I bought on the way back to my apartment yesterday and just throw on the same I've always worn, just more futuristic, and 80% polyester. I run my hand over the smooth fabric and wonder at its creation before I find the imprinted tag and see it was 100% recycled. I nod in approval, I always wondered how long it would take for the free market to turn 100% recycled. Grabbing more Tupari and some of the left over fish for breakfast I turn the holo-projector on and load up a documentary on Thessian wildlife while chewing on some barely warm fish and native greens.

* * *

"...thus the existence of eezo within all living things on Thessia has resulted in may of them adopting biotic capabilities, another example of the resilience of organic life..."

The ending credits run along with a strange seashell clacking that I think is ancient Asari music.

_Huh, now I know why I nearly threw up and blew up at the same time last night. I've got to avoid digesting so much native flora, I don't need MORE eezo in my system then I already have._

Picking up my plate I check the time as I deposit it into the sink and remotely deactivate the projector.

_0502, good, now I can call Seila._

She answers right away, "Scorpio?" She asks as she stares in shock at her omni-tool. "What are you doing up so early?"

I smile, relieved to see another friendly face among a sea of strangers that was my social life, "I don't get a lot of sleep so I'm usually up by three or four in the morning."

She seems to stare in surprise for a moment before looking off to the side at a noise and frowning as she says, "Bosh'tet, sorry Scorpio not you, a really rude Turian just walked by and decided to say hello to the resident suit rat. Seriously why can't he just suffocate in his own gastric-intestinal fluids like a normal asshole?"

I laugh a little and shake my head at her mood, "Like usual they just pull their head out of their asses once a day for air and shove it right back up there. HAHA! Anyways, LIA is having some problems and needs an upgrade, so I decided to call my favorite Quarian programmer to see if she was available." I state happily.

_I barely know her and yet it's like we've been friends for years. Must be the enhanced social skills present in most Quarians._

Her body language perks up and she seems to smile from behind her light blue mask, "Oh! Sure! Let me just pack up some things and I'll meet you at that one bench in the markets, it's kind of my favorite spot." Seila says brightly

"Got it, say in half an hour?" I ask.

She nods just before frowning and turning left to yell, "BACK THE KEELAH OFF YOU RACIST SACK OF RAKRA!" A double toned mumbling is heard barely off screen before Seila shakes her head and says, "I've got to go, see you then." and terminates the call.

_Man, she must be dealing with some really angry Turian. I hope she isn't in any danger, wherever she's staying._

I throw on my armor reluctantly, knowing that I'm going to have to use it whether people think I'm a terrorist or not, and clamp on my SR and pistol before leaving the apartment.

_Lets see if I can use my skills at blending in to avoid alerting the APC._

Walking out into the lobby I notice the attendant watching something familiar and shift slightly closer to realize... she was watching Asari porn. I quickly blush and look once more to realize it wasn't porn, just an episode of Vaenia.

_Either way I'm getting the hell out of here._

I all but sprint out of the lobby and jump into my skycar to realize that I had no idea how to drive it without LIA.

_Frick, ok, lets see if I can figure this thing out._

I flip through the menus and memorize the functions for a moment before just giving up and looking it up on the Extranet.

_Ok, so I have to use this menu..._

* * *

A black skycar wobbles in the air for a moment before zooming off in a random direction towards a skyscraper and dives to the left around it.

"Son of a bitch!" Scorpio shouts as he inputs another line of commands just before spinning into a parking spot down the street from his destination. He staggers out of the skycar and locks it before keeling over from the rush of adrenaline.

_I really need to get more practice before doing that again._

I shake my head and lock the systems down before getting pushes slightly be someone walking by, I feel them reach into my pocket and grab onto my spare credit chit. I quickly grab their arm and throw them onto the grown while pulling out my pistol and aiming at the person. "Stay where you are or I'll fire!" The hooded figure freezes in their half-crouching position and looks up at my in fear. I raise an eyebrow at the now clearly hooded Asari and watch her green eyes glow with fright.

_She can't be more than 20 or 30 years old!_

I relax my stance and holster my gun, "What's your name? Who are you?" I ask while holding out my hand to help her up.

She stares at it for a moment before carefully taking it and finally meeting my eyes, she gasps and staggers back against my skycar, "Y-You!" She breaths in utter shock. I simply take a step forward and she presses farther against the skycar as if I was going to murder her.

"Why are you so frightened pad-foot?" I take a chance and try to talk to her like the thief she is.

She freezes up and stares at me in fear and trepidation, "I-I d-don't know what you're talking about!" I take another step forward and rest my palm to the right of her head on the skycar.

"There is nothing to be frightened about young one, I know the dark allure of being one with the shadows." I say calmly, her body language practically screams danger.

She looks away as if she was ashamed before she starts shaking, "P-please let me go. I-I will do anything you want I just want to live!" Her hands fidget nervously and I can see tears start to form in her shaded eyes.

_I am not going to get through with her like this._

I back up slightly and take out a chit with two thousand credits on it, "I'll see your freedom if you take this to your master and tell him that Scorpio wishes to talk with them about a business arrangement." I hold my hand out as if to shake, but with the chit in my palm. She stares at my hand for a small while before she reaches out and shakes it while taking the chit. She looks into my shaded eyes with her own and smiles slightly before bolting to my right and out of sight as she blends into the shadows.

_I handled that pretty well, the best information gatherers in the city are beggars and thieves, always. I was just wondering how long it would take to actually meet one, it's been weeks and I think I've spotted at least twenty of them._

I sigh at the stressfully strange situation before shaking my head and noting the event mentally.

_This day is getting really weird already._

I think about what else I could do to gain contacts on Thessia while I walk down the block and up to Seila's favorite bench to see her already sitting there, tinkering on her omni-tool like usual. I lower my hood and and mask so she can recognize me.

She looks up as I approach and I can see her eyes smile at me from behind her light blue mask, "Scorpio! It's good to see you!" She stands and hugs me for a second before pulling away and gesturing for us to sit.

"Its good to see you too Seila, how are things going?" I ask conversationally.

She looks at me strangely, as if trying to decide whether or not to tell me something, "Well... I found a place to stay since we last spoke."

I smile at her, "That's wonderful! I'm guessing it's in a community center from the unwelcome Turian who keeps harassing you?"

She pulls back in shock, "Yes, how did you-? Nevermind, I won't ask I don't really want to know." She shakes her head, "Anyways, what seems to be the problem with LIA?" She asks as she leans slightly towards me.

I call up my omni-tool and show her the error message, "This is why, it crashed and I need it upgraded to be more personable with it's answers as well. It's the only thing I get to readily talk to and it would be nice to at least pretend it was a person."

Seila shakes slightly and by the curves in her eyes she was laughing, "Oh... well..." She says quietly, trying to keep herself together.

I frown, "What's so funny?" I ask while going over what I said before.

She turns aways slightly and states, "Oh nothing..." In an innocent tone that doesn't put my mind at ease. "I will just need to access your omni-tool for a bit to impliment the upgrades." She says seriously.

I reluctantly slip off the tool and hand it to her, she immediately slips it onto her right arm and types away on it's display until it changes to what I would assume was Khelish.

I sit back and look around at the people walking by and spot one or two shady people working the crowds.

_Ah, youth, I remember when I used to do that with Victoria, what a time._

I reminisce on all the coins and dollars I used to take from the more well-off people's pockets without ever being caught. Then I remember the largest score I had ever managed by myself. I was just a month into the work and had just started watching for potential targets by myself in the mall when I spotted our town's resident millionaire. An extremely successful farmer with over five thousand acres of land being rented out locally, giving his family almost six thousand a month in just rent. I watched him out of the corner of my eye and decided to follow him to see what he was up to.

Ten minutes into it he abruptly turns around and stares at me angrily. I ignore his eye and walk past him and into a department store to cover myself. I scan the room and notice it was mostly empty accept for the large amount of clothes and two or three employees wandering around. I remember waiting for half an hour before noticing my target was still wandering around in the mall. I debated actually picking his pocket since he probably already spent it all while I waited. I shake my head and silently trail him into the parking lot and survey the area before sneaking up behind him and taking his wallet from his coat pocket, I quickly empty the leather bi-fold and place it on top of his driver seat as he turns to grab his bags from the sidewalk. Dashing as quickly as I can into the nearby bushes I look at the wad of twenties in my hand and felt a slight pang of guilt that I always had when I stole.

I ended up stealing three hundred dollars that day, and I ended up giving all but one twenty away to the salvation army to rest my conscience. I stole sure, I committed criminal acts all the time in my youth, but I never kept everything I stole. Mostly everything but what I needed to cover costs was given to over a dozen charities across the county. Victoria never understood why I did what I did when I had that wad of cash in my pocket, but then again she grew up in the big city where if you didn't keep everything you took you could die from starvation within a week.

"Scorpio?" I blink and look to my left in surprise before remembering that Seila was sitting there and smiling.

I sit up and turn to her before asking, "What were you saying?"

She scowls slightly and says, "I was saying that I still have a few hours of time left on this VI and it's getting uncomfortable out here so where do you think we should go?"

I look at her for a moment before remembering my skycar and saying, "Sure, we can go to my apartment for a bit, it's pretty close."

She and I stand together and she continues to tinker on my omni-tool while we walk towards my skycar. "So, you hear about the incident at Circuits and More a few days ago?" I hear her ask from beside me.

I look over and see her looking at me, but still typing on my omni-tool. I sigh and say, "Yeah, double homicide then suicide. Really terrible."

She nods, "That was my favorite tech shop, and the only tech shop around here that would allow Quarians to purchase from them. I knew the owners, they were nice people! How some sick Salarian Bosh'tet could do something like that is beyond me." I take a deep breath and nod in agreement.

_I still remember the stench of the rotting corpses when I walked inside._

I look up and quickly pull Seila to the side as I notice APC officers walking down the street. "Scorpio! What are you do-"

I shush her, "You have to be quiet, the APC are walking by." She watches me for a moment before nodding in understanding before following me into the shadows of a back alley and crouching behind a dumpster.

We wait there as the two officers walk by and then I sigh as my alertness diminishes. "Now we can go." I say.

She grabs be by the arm as we exit and spins me around to glare angrily at me, "What was all that about?!"

I watch her for a second before saying, "The APC aren't kind to Humans anymore than Quarians. We'd be put to questioning faster then you can say, 'this is just great' and I don't feel like intimidating them right now. Sorry about all that."

She calms for a moment, "Alright, but warn me next time! You scared the hell out of me!"

Smiling, I nod in promise before walking up to my skycar and unlocking it. She steps up cautiously and examines the black surface carefully before brushing her hand almost reverently along the smooth surface and asking, "How did you afford such a beautiful piece of machinery." By the sound of her voice I realize she was in slight shock.

I walk up to her side of the skycar, "I re-built it from the ground up with parts and pieces I bought on the Extranet. The used original was really cheep."

_More like completely free, I am seriously going to get bit in the arse from all this lying one of these days._

She and I get in and she brushes her hands across the spotless dash board and holo display, "This is amazing! Why don't Quarians on pilgrimages do this?" She exclaims with delight.

I laugh as I activate the controls and carefully lift us off the ground. "I don't know, maybe they just don't think it's cost-effective." I dip the front slightly up and bite my lip as I hit the accelerator. I tense up in intense concentration from trying to avoid hitting the other skycars.

"Wow I can barely feel all the twists and turns you're doing!" She shouts excitedly.

I don't respond and just focus on guiding the skycar through traffic without smashing or crashing or-

"Gah" I hit the decelerator as a skycar nearly clips us and dive under it just in time.

_Shit this is crazy!_

"Watch where you're going you crazy little Bosh'tet!" Seila shouts at the driver I nearly hit.

_Oh god oh god oh god oh god!_

I hit the decelerator again and gently lower the skycar into the parking lot of my building before locking the parking brake into place and finally breathing again.

"Woah! lets do that again! I never knew you were so good at dodging traffic?" I stare at Seila like she was insane for a second before shaking off my adrenaline and carefully getting out.

_I really need to get more practice so I don't end up killing anybody!_

I swallow nervously as I swear to myself to never drive the hunk of expensive metal without VI assistance ever again. "Come on, my apartment in through here."

We walk through the lobby and notice the attendant was still watching Vaenia before I lead Seila to my door and call up my omni-tool. "This will take only a moment." I say while activating the hacking module I built out of boredom over the last few days in my free time.

The circular hacking module spread over the door and I hold up my Terra 7 to tap at the green sections as they appear. "What type of hacking program is that?" Seila asks from behind me.

I look at her for a second before looking back at the module and finishing the last fourth of the first ring of the hack and moving onto the six part second ring for medium locks. "I built it myself, so my own." I smile when I see her shocked look out of the corner of my eye.

"How?" I smile wider. The algorithms I downloaded into the system were super-computer grade back in the twenty first, but in this day and age they're part of basic programming.

I look at her again for a moment before finishing up the second ring and starting on the ten-sectioned third for hard-locks, "All I did was program my omni-tool to scan for a list of high-level mathematical programs and equations and use a master-calculus calculator program I bought over the Extranet to solve them. The only problem is whenever I find a program it doesn't recognize I have to solve the program manually using long-hand logarithmic calculations and polynomial synthetic division systems to the whatever degree that system is using. Which takes me about five minutes on average for a tenth-degree system." I take a deep breath and smile as I finish up the last ring and my door unlocks.

_I might not be a mathematical savant, but I know my stuff. It's why I can tell good calibrations from bad and work an omni-tool without too many problems._

Not surprisingly Seila tilts her head in a mixture of interest and confusion. "What?" She asks as we walk inside.

Dropping onto the couch I sigh and wave for her to sit as well, which she graciously accepts. "In simpler terms I gave my omni-tool ways to solve certain math equations that encrypted locks use, but if I ever find a encryption that the program doesn't have a solution for I have to do it myself." I explain as clearly as I can.

She nods without confusion and smiles while sitting back comfortably, "Oh, well now I'm really not showing a great example of the Quarian race. I like programming code but higher-grade mathematics? Noooo, Keelah no! I hate math! I like art and tinkering with interfaces not solving base six mathematics! They're just confusing to me."

We laugh at the irony. "Yeah, and I'm a human who loves tech, is a natural biotic, and can interact with Aliens without a lot of issues! We're completely nothing like our species!" I shout in realization.

We burst into fits of laughter for ten maybe fifteen minutes before finally calming down and sighing at how simple it all was right now. Seila looks around for the first time and seems surprised, "So, this is your apartment huh? It's big! Bigger then the three cubic meter cubicles we use back on the Migrant Fleet."

_Huh, I could live in a three cubic meter area. I practically did that during most of my life anyways._

"That's interesting since this apartment is the smallest I could find near the markets. You don't want to know how much I pay monthly in rent for this place." I shake my head in annoyance.

_Seriously, ten grand a month is a bit much._

She sits up and says, "Oh? It can't be that bad."

I stare at her incredulously. "Let's just say I could buy my own ship and live in it for how much I pay yearly." I state flatly.

She crosses her arms defiantly, "I seriously doubt that!"

"Really?" I ask, smirking slightly.

She nods, "Really, just tell me."

I sigh at her stubbornness, "120,000 a year."

Her eyes widened in absolute shock and she coughs in shock, "How is it that much?!"

I shake my head, "I don't know but I think it has something to do with how AAH is just down the road." Her confused look told me she wasn't familiar with the Academy.

"Oh, umm, AAH stands for the Armali Academy of the Huntress. It's been around for over 6,000 years and it trains young maidens to become Huntresses. I'm actually the first non-Asari to get in." I explain casually.

She tilts her head in question, "The first?"

I nod and interlace my hands over my lap, "Yes, they only allow natural biotics, biotics that don't use an amp, to train there. I'm an extremely special case where as like most Asari I don't need an amp to use my biotics. It was previously impossible for any other species to even think about using them without an amp or a lot of cybernetic implants an-" I cut myself off to avoid anymore rambling. "Anyways, let's finish our work."

She nods in agreement before pausing and looking at me, "So you know how to clean weapons? I have no time so they can get a bit... rough and if you could help?" She hands me her pistol and I blink at how wrecked it was, melted drips of fuses metal was lining the outsides of the metal casing, the color was all but seared off by what looks like an incinerate, and when I look at the ammo block I see it was shredding pieces of the interior of the gun for ammunition!

"MOTHER OF HELL SEILA! What did you do to this thing?! throw it into a pit of lava?!" She winces at my words.

She frowns deeply, "No! Like I said I don't maintenance them as often as I should!"

I shake my head and swap my Terra 7 onto my right wrist before getting to work on the nearly scrapped pistol.

* * *

Twenty minutes later I'm nearly finished restoring the main exterior and decide to start on the interior using my mini-fabricator. First I pull out a small crate from under the coffee table next to my weapons case and set it onto the table. I open it up to reveal small bars of metallic elements I had ordered to test out my omni-tool's mini-fabricator, and forgot about until now. I pick up a small platinum bar and smile.

_But now they're perfect for weapon repair._

I activate my omni-tool and begin rebuilding the interior of the mangled piece of _Kreck_.

* * *

An hour and a half later I'm done. I literally had to re-fabricate everything but the wiring, casing and one frictionless material mod I scanned for personal re-fabrication later. "And there." I say with a heavy sigh.

_That took about as long as I expected._

Seila looks up from her code and blinks, "What? Oh! I'm sorry, I had a brilliant idea on how to increase the VI's reaction time and the time just got away from me. Is this...?" I hand her the pistol.

She marvels at the its sleek design and carefully run her hands over the shining metal. "This, this is just like new! How do you do it?! It's crazy! It's insane!" She exclaims in absolute shock.

I shrug and smirk at her, "It's me." I laugh at the accurate description she did of me without even trying.

She hurriedly finishes up the last few lines of code and smiles triumphantly, "It's finished, and it's even better than Avina from the Citadel! The only problem is it takes up a lot of data space. 200 terabytes." She says apologetically as she downloads LIA into five OSD's and hands them and my omni-tool back to me.

I blink in surprise as I take them, "Holy frick! That's like re-downloading all my combat programs!"

Seila sighs at my reaction and shifts angrily, "I know... agh! I'm sorry but to process this effectively you'll need another omni-tool."

_Another? Seriously?_

I show her the purple display on my right arm, "I already have another omni-tool, you think I can just use this one?" I ask, hopeful that I wouldn't have to buy ANOTHER expensive omni-tool.

Seila's eyes land on the omni-tool and she stares in what I assume is shock, "Oh Keelah! You? You, how did you? You found it!"

I hesitantly ask, "I found what?"

Her eyes sparkle from behind her visor. "You found my old omni-tool! Where did you get it?!"

_Ohhh... Ok, now I see- And I stole it from her favorite shop._

I stifle a sigh of exasperation and say, "I bought it from Circuits and More along with my Savant, um... do you want it back?"

She looks at me and wrings her hand slightly before saying, "Yes! I'll be extremely happy if I do! I haven't built an omni-tool that beautiful since in years! Actually I built this one as a replacement," She activates her tool to show a crisp-clear sky-blue holographic display. "But it still doesn't hold a blow torch to my Terra 7! If I help you build another one can you let me have it?"

I nod and smile at her, "Yeah that'll be awesome! I've always wanted to know how to build an omni-tool!"

She nods enthusiastically and rubs her hands together, "Now, where do you want to start? It'll take a REALLY long time to get the basic theories out of the way. Do you have any questions before we start?"

_How did she get the display to be a different color?_

"Wow, how's the processor?" I asked excitedly while pointing at her blue omni-tool.

She smiles and starts explaining the specs, "It has a 120GB/second processor with over a terabyte of RAM. The band can hold twelve separate OSD's and has a maximum capacity of three petabytes of data on the system. The best part is that it can integrate into older omni-tools to share processing power collectively or you could link it into your hard-suit computer to boost processing power in combat!"

_Three petabytes! Three thousand terabytes! Holy god!_

I sit there, staring at her incredulously.

_So they actually hit the petabyte, I've been wondering._

"So... how good is this compared to your old one?" I asks curiously.

She shakes her head, "It doesn't even compare to it! My Terra 7 could run three times my own omni-tool's maximum capacity with ease! And this one is the equivilant of twenty Savant III's working cooperatively!" I blink in shock and astonishment.

_That's just... insane! That's phenomenal! That's..._

I stay quiet for a moment, thinking about how much that really was.

_Liara could probably run the entire info-network with five of them._

"How much did it cost you to make it?!" I ask her with a boiling enthusiasm.

She sighs with what sounds like frustration, "Enough that the Fleet sent me out on Pilgrimage early to pay it off."

Catching her depressed tone I apologize, "Oh, sorry."

She shakes her head, "No, it's alright. This technology on the market is well worth the cost, but to an individual it's very costly. 80,000 credits worth of materials and over a year of programming. It's just not worth it right now."

_Hmm... but in a few years..._

"You could sell the schematic for a huge profit if you refine it. Maybe make it run five times as fast as a Savant III instead of twenty times and only hold one petabyte of data at once instead of three. That way you could cut costs and maximize profit."

She laughs, "You sound like a Volus economist, but I get what you mean. I'll work on it. For now I need to teach you how to build an omni-tool."

She calls up some schematics and put them up on the holo-projector. "Ok first thing you do is..."

* * *

(Eight hours later)

"...and you have a fast-running, low-cost omni-tool for all your personal needs." She shut off the projector and starts picking up her forty OSD's that held the secrets to how the omni-tool works.

I look up at her in astonishment and hand her a dark matter stabilizer unit she let me inspect. "So after you build the exterior holo-projector it's a guessing game as to how the Tornic propulsion system actually works in cohesion with the dark matter stabilizers?" She collapses her metallic pointer and nods as she packed up her display collection of ancient omni-tools she started collecting when she was three.

"Yes, the dark matter converters have to be miss-aligned to a certain degree to allow the conversion of matter to energy effectively, otherwise nothing works and the entire thing goes BOOM! after you start it up."

I smile thoughtfully. "Fascinating..."

_I had to take a lot of notes, it's as complex as building a skycar from scratch! Without a schematic! Or an omni-tool!_

"I should go, my Bosh'tet roommate is probably worried I died or something. See you later!" Seila steps out, reverently grooming her old Terra 7 I gave her as the door closes behind her silently.

Following her path to the door I try and calm my adrenaline rush with deep breaths. "My head is spinning, what a day!" Re-encrypting the door I spend a couple of minutes cleaning up the bits of metal scrap Seila had used to demonstrate the gravitation effect of dark matter with an omni-tool.

_She orbited them around a micro singularity above our heads for eight seconds! It was awesome!_

I seal the crate of metal scrap, tossed it into the Turian chair for later and went to take a shower, my mind still racing with the knowledge that everything every scientist thought was correct about the universe from my time was wrong.

* * *

**"Shots fired shots fired! We're going down! We can't stop them! How did they break through?! I need reinforcements on the doubl- *BOOM!* Did Scorpio make it to the temple? Wait... what's tha- oh goddess no! AHHHH!"**

I jump awake panting, sweat trickling down my face as the last of the voices bled away from my memory. "What the frick was that?" I ask as I clench my chest and breath. I was alive, I was fine.

Taking a deep breath, I look at the time on my omni-tool. "0021? Well... I'm not going back to sleep after THAT dream." I mutter as I close my eyes and sigh as my heart finally slowed down to its average one beat per second.

_I never understand why I have these anymore._

A pounding hits my door and I instinctively jump up and grab my pistol from the coffee table and aim it at the door. The pounding continues in three beat increments. *pound* *pound* *pound* I walk up to the door and open it while brandishing my pistol and stare down the sights at the Turian and he looks back at me in slight shock before saying, "Scorpio? It's Nilus? I said I had to reschedule for this morning?" I quickly lower my pistol and rub my eyes as he walks inside.

_Why is he here?_

Slapping myself on the forehead I sigh at my own stupidity of forgetting about the meeting we scheduled and walk up behind him after re-locking the door. He looks around for a bit, looking as tired as I feel.

_I expected him to arrive at 0500, not right after midnight!_

I tap him on the shoulder, "Hey Nilus?" He spins around and shoves a gun in my face.

My eyes widen as my adrenaline spikes. Now completely awake, I hold up my hands and stare down the barrel nervously before he realizes who I am and lowers it. "Sorry, can't be too careful. You wanted me to come for some information you had?"

_God does his voice bring back some horrible memories. Eden Prime, Saren, Sovereign..._

"Yeah you can sit in the recliner," I wave my hand at the alien chair I didn't remove when I moved in. "It's specifically made for Turians, I know how uncomfortable human furniture can be for other aliens so I kept it just in case." His tired eyes seem to brighten up a bit at the sight of the chair.

_Huh, I guess the _nowhere to sit_ thought was more of a problem then I expected._

Shrugging slightly I walk into the kitchen and open the fridge. I remember seeing an ad that was about how Tupari drinks were DNA neutral, so Asari and Turians could drink it. "Hey, you want some Tupari? You seem thirsty." I heard a comfortable sigh and something resembling a small purr coming from the living room so I stuck my head in to see Nilus fast asleep in the recliner, his left hand curled around his pistol as a precaution.

_Oh, that's just too cute! And a bit terrifying. I think I'll let him rest._

Yawning myself, I quietly chuckle at my situation and grab some clothes before walking into the bathroom to change. I look at myself in the mirror and see how tired my dark brown eyes were. looking up I raised an eyebrow at my messed up hair and decide a shower was in order.

_This whole time I've been here I think I've showered three times. I need to get back on a schedule._

As I finish I notice my wounded foot had healed over and I grab my omni-tool from the counter.

_Lets see if I can manage to remove the medi-gel without cutting my foot off._

Activating my omni-tool, I sent an ultra-sonic pulse through the crusty medi-gel. The gel melted off my skin and washed down the drain with ease to reveal freshly grown scarr-free, pale as usual skin.

_Miracles of modern medicine I guess._

I made a mental note to buy more of the military grade medi-gel since it seems to work extremely well and step out of the shower. I throw on my regular attire and walk my dirty clothes and armor to the hamper next to the all of crates in the living-room. I turn around and notice Nilus, still fast asleep in the recliner and purring like a 300 pound kitten.

_Note to self, find out why Turians purr when comfortable._

Grabbing my laundry, I decide to find out how to clean them and walk out the door before placing a hard-set encryption on it and turning to walk down the hall and towards my building's laundry room.

* * *

**The Turian fleet stayed above Palavan, keeping us covered as we fought through waves and waves of these... things. A private said something about them being Batarians, I couldn't tell, they were too mutated into abominations for me to care. All I knew is that my family was here, and they were in danger. So I fought. "Sargent!" **

**I stood at attention as my commanding officer walked up to me with a data-pad in his talons. "Sir!" I responded proudly. **

_**Ive always been proud of what I became. After fathers death, I've been wondering how to make a difference, but now I was. I was fighting the good fight.**_

**"At ease." I lowered my arm and accepted the datapad. "You are to take your squad up the south passage and wipe out the enemy forces there, then re-take the over-run supply depot a mile north so we can drop supplies in from the fleet!" An explosion rocks the area and we regain our balance after a moment of stagger. I nod my head like a good Turian and wait for my superior to leave before blinking again. Taking in a deep breath I went to gather my squad for the fight. **

**I found them in the make-shift supply center at the center of the camp. Delin our tech specialist was flirting unsuccessfully with a civilian recruit, Selia our resident Cabal Vanguard and the only female in our squad was polishing her duel poison blades while conversing with Betorn, Betorn our demolitions expert, and Fern the best sniper in the 56th Battalion, were both playing some strange omni-tool game while keeping an eye on the clock for when we needed to deploy again. They all but ignored me as I approach, I was the youngest of the group and they didn't think I was fit to lead them into battle. I clear my throat to get their attention, "Team, we've been assigned a new mission, we need to wipe out a squad of hostiles bunkered down in the south passage and head north to retake the supply depot so the fleet's ships have a place to land when they come around to do a supply drop." They all nod like good Turians, but I could still tell there was some reluctance in them as they grab their weapons and march by me. I take a deep breath to steady my nerves and walk out after them, wondering who would come back from this mission alive to tell their friends about it...**

Nihlus's eyes shoot open from the strangely realistic dream.

_By the spirits that was strange. That was my son I think... but he's only six years old right now! What was he fighting on Palavan? Wait... why was Palavan under siege!_

Nihlus collects his racing thoughts and takes a calming breath before completely forgetting the dream and noticing he wasn't in his apartment.

_Where am I?_

Searching the small apartment with his eyes he notices he was sitting in a vintage Palaven-style chair and shifted to make sure it wasn't a mirage before smiling. This was the first chair that was made with Turian's in mind that he'd seen in months. Looking more closely around the apartment his eyes spotted a crate that was sitting on what humans called a coffee table.

_*scoff* More like foot-rest, why do they have to make them so short?_

Nihlus shakes his head clear a bit more and looks past the foot-rest at what looks like a wall of storage crates. He blinks in surprise and wonders how anyone could obtain so many crates before he shifts again. Something didn't feel right to him, he looks down and frowns at the pistol his left hand, he follows the way it was aiming and finds the exit.

_When am I ever going to relax if my reflexes do that when I pass out?_

He holsters the gun and closes his eyes for a moment to remember where he was when he passed out.

_Trying to get information from the Human named Scorpio, I was in the lobby and-_

His eyes fly open as he remembers why he was there and he stands up carefully to avoid waking the renter of the small apartment. He bends his knees and flares his mandibles as he stretches his sleep away.

_That was a good nap._

Opening his omni-tool to check his messages his brow-plates jump as he spots the clock in the corner of the screen.

_0901, last time I checked the time it was 0001 and I was talking with an Asari clearly addicted to that vid she was watching and warding off a drunken stranger trying to get me to dance with her._

Nihlus shakes his head and turns off his omni-tool in favor of wandering the apartment.

_I may be a Spectre, but I respect people's schedules. If they're asleep then I do something constructive and wait until they wake up._

Walking into a kitchen of some sort he notices a fridge and walks over.

_Is it too much to hope for some Tupari to be stocked in it?_

Opening the fridge cautiously he peeks in and seeing something familiar he swings the door open and flares his mandibles widely at the familiar look of my favorite soft drink in nearly every flavor they make it.

_Oh spirits... I think I just died and went to heaven!_

Grabbing some Palaven Liern-flavored Tupari he happily cracks the seal and shivers at the familiar sound of carbonation fizzing.

_Oh spirits do I love that sound._

Nihlus chugs the entire bottle in eight seconds and clicks his mandibles in happiness as the all-to-familiar feeling of bubbling carbonation rushed down his throat.

_I really do love Tupari, It's a great traveling drink. Too bad Saren hates the stuff._

Grabbing another bottle Nihlus closes the fridge and walks over the the lone window that sat over the Burkner cook-all oven and watches as the skycars flew by without a care in the galaxy.

_Spirits it would be nice if I could just retire to somewhere remote, blend in with some basic job to pay rent and just live my life in total peace and quiet with my family._

Remembering his mate sent a message to him last night while he waited for Scorpio to get home he rereads it and sends one back to his family with his love attached via heart-chip.

_She's the only woman I could love. It's shameful not being there for her and my son. They understand the situation, I do as well, but some-days I just want to quit everything so I don't end up dead and leave my family fatherless like my own did after the Relay 314 Incident._

He sighs, frustrated, and cracks the seal on his second Tupari. His mood instantly brightens and a grin turns his face upwards as he starts yet another round of heaven.

* * *

(Scorpio POV)

Walking down the corridor I notice the entire floor was silent except for a slight rumbling coming from the laundry room at the end of the hall. Stepping into the room I notice another person doing laundry. An Asari, a naked Asari.

_Ok, I know they do this thing all the time, but it's really uncomfortable in here right now._

I do my best to ignore her as I read the instructions for the machines and find that there was no washer and dryer in the future. It's all one machine that apparently uses precise mass effect fields and vibrations to separate the dirt and grim from clothes and armor without destroying the fabric!

That, is just awesome!

I walk over to one and toss everything I had into it before paying the fifty credit fee to start it. It hums to life and spun and shook relatively quietly. "Oh, am I in your way?" I hear from my right.

Turning I focus my vision on the Asari's face and smile. "No you're not, I'm just a bit new to all this." She raises a non-existent eyebrow in question.

"You haven't been in this apartment building for long?" She asks curiously.

I nod and hold out my hand palm side up in an Asarian hand shake. "My name's Scorpio, I've been on Thessia for nine days so I'm actually new to everything here."

She stares in surprise at my hand, but smiles before placing her palm over mine gently. "I am Neril'Terol, new to the building." We pull back our hands and she looks me over with a smirk.

_Oh god, this is awkward as hell!_

"Not bad, you an assassin?" She asks seriously.

I blink at her. "What?"

She smirks and crosses her arms over her bare chest. "You don't have to hide it from me. The quiet steps, polite behavior regarding a total stranger, strangely orderly clothes for just waking up, watching for threats wherever they might be." I frown as she turns around to fold her laundry. "I half expect you to have a combat sword of some-sort strapped to your thigh." She winks at me as my left eye twitches in slight annoyance.

"I'm not an assassin." I say forcefully.

_Though now that I think about it, a retractable combat sword does sound pretty nice for when I can't use my biotics._

She turns fully towards me and scoffs loudly, "Oh of course! You're just really sociable, extremely tidy, very paranoid, and psychologically insane." She states in a sarcastic sing-song voice before pointing an accusing finger at me. "I know your kind! Always ready to kill someone, but too dull to actually do it!"

I held up my hands in protective shock. "Whoa, calm down! I'm actually not an assassin! I might have the mental capacity for such and the abilities, but I don't do that!"

She frowns dangerously at me, "If you come anywhere near Lial I'll rip you apart like the demon you are!" She shouts with absolute venom in her voice.

A burning rage starts to built from being falsely accused, but I keep it contained to avoid accidentally flaring my biotics. Taking a deep breath I look into her deep blue eyes and start connecting the dots.

_Defensive against assassins, watching everyone around her, analyzing everything she can see, protecting a supposed lover or sister named Lial, and her deep blue eyes._

Thinking over it all in a few seconds as I stare at her, two conclusions came to mind, she was protecting a criminal/innocent, or she was harboring an Ardat-Yakshi.

_Oh fuck me..._

My eyes widened at the realization.

_Why do I always have to deal with these things? I mean can't I have ONE normal day in my life?!_

"Well... whoever Lial is, she seems like she's in trouble. If you need any help..." I start to say.

Her anger falters and she blinks away her tears before turning away and saying, "We don't need your help." She gathers her pile of clothes and starts walking towards the exit, but something in me told me to stop her.

"Wait, I'm sorry, I just thought you or Lial were in trouble and my first instinct was to help." She turns towards me and I could see the fear and sadness in her eyes, even though her face was pulled together in anger. I lower my arms and continue, "I don't know you, but I can see when someone is in a bad situation, it's one of my talents. I'm simply offering my help if you require it. My apartment room number is 13, knock twice and I'll answer." A low beep came from behind me and out of reflex I turned abruptly and stood in a defensive stance I adopted from hours of gaming, a nearby improvised pole held above my head, ready to strike.

"Cycle complete." The machine stops its spinning and unseals

"Not an assassin... quit lying to yourself." I turn to argue back, but she was gone.

_Strange girl._

Turning back to the machines I frown at the multiple cycles and groan angrily as I send another fifty credits to the machine.

_This is going to take a while._

Calling up my omni-tool I start looking up anything and everything about one Neril'Terol.

* * *

"Great, another wasted twenty minutes" I exit out of the fifteenth search protocol I attempted and sigh in exasperation.

_I can't find ANYTHING about either Asari! Not one thing! I even called the manager for the building and she said she knew nothing about a Neril or Lial!_

Rubbing my now even more tired eyes, I decide to just tap into the feeds for the camera in the room and run her face over the Extranet.

I access the firewalls and break them using my hacking module and I rewind to the time I arrived.

"What the fuck!" I watch myself walk into the room, look to my right, talk to no visible person, and then start searching for the person on my omni-tool.

...

_Oh shit, I'm hallucinating again._

I run a hand down my face and sigh in exasperation, "I don't need this!"

*beep* I jump at the noise and sigh as I realize it was the machine again.

_I need to get a grip! If I can't get a hold on reality I'll be useless in the fight to stop the Reapers!_

I grab all of my clothes and armor before walking back down the hall, wondering if I could actually stay sane long enough to help Shepard.

* * *

A/N Continues on the next chapter, and I'd like to know what you guys/gals think about my story so far. A lot of people are favoriting this story but I'm curious as to why. Is it the story? The character? Or is it how I'm writing this story? I can't make this thing awesome without some feedback! ;)

And for those of you who knew that Thessia didn't have a moon, thanks for NOT telling me! I'll be editing the last few chapters asap just to make it 100% to the lore of the Mass Effect Universe. If any of my loyal viewers know about anything regarding uncommon lore written by Bioware please send me a link or something because I do not want to get anything wrong. I've already had to deal with some furious super-fans trolling me about Thessia's non-moon because I didn't know the truth in the matter. :/

Thanks to you all and I'll see you next time! ~BlackenedAsh24


	9. Building a Better VI Part two

A/N I've been having a great time writing!

Read, Review and Enjoy!

* * *

Still trying to wrap my head around how I hallucinated a naked Asari, I open up my apartment and look across the room into the kitchen to find Nihlus standing there, looking out the window in what looks like deep thought.

_He must be thinking about something pretty hard not to notice what's happening around him._

I shrug and put away my clothes in a few crates before throwing on my armor and running a diagnostics check to make sure the wash didn't wreck anything.

_He is seriously the least likely person from the Mass Effect Universe that I would expect to see in my apartment._

Clipping my hood into place I my mask up and let the diagnostic run for another minute before ending it and nodding to myself that everything seemed normal. Walking over to Nihlus I carefully tap him on the shoulder to try and break him from his thoughts, "Nihlus?" He doesn't respond. He just continues to stand there, staring unblinking into the quiet morning of Armali. I place a hand on his shoulder and shake him slightly, "Nihlus?" He blinks and looks at me, But he still seems lost in thought.

_Ok, this is getting weird._

"Nihlus!" I back-hand him across the face, hard.

His mandibles twitch and he groans painfully while holding his face. "Oh... spirits... I've got lay off the Tupari." He mutters to himself before looking at me. He blinks in surprise that I was standing there before looking at his omni-tool and raising both eye-plates in even more surprise. "Spirits... has it really been two hours?" He shakes his head and solidifies his resolve before looking at me with a painful expression, "I feel like my I was just hit by a Krogan biotic hammer!" He rubs his cheek while flexing his jaw.

I cringe, "Sorry, you were out of it, I didn't know what else to do short of firing a round off next to your head." I say apologetically.

He shakes his head, "No, it's alright. My wife does the same thing whenever I come home. I'm used to taking beatings."

I nod, "You do seem rough around the edges." I comment while trying to stay positive.

He stares at me for a second before saying, "I'm a Turian, I'm spiky, being called rough is just a compliment. At least that's what I think. You tell Saren that he's looking a bit rough and he'll bite your head right off."He laughs slightly and shakes his head, "Spirits is he serious. I told him once that he needed to relax once in a while and he just stares at me like I was crazy!" Nihlus shakes his head.

I freeze up slightly at hearing Saren's name before smiling and pushing Saren out of my mind. "So you're a Spectre?" I ask, trying to get a friendly conversation started.

He shakes his head before sipping a bit of some Tupari, "Not yet, I'm still in my apprenticeship. Saren is showing me the ropes to I don't screw up and 'misrepresent the Turian people' like he always reminds me." He sighs and takes another sip of Tupari before looking out the window again. "Sometimes I wonder if he's only concerned with taking revenge for his father. He died in the Relay 314 incident." Nihlus pauses before looking at me and saying, "Sorry, First Contact."

I wave him off, "It doesn't bother me, I know what both sides did wrong and how much of a misunderstanding it became."

Nihlus blinks, "You don't seem to hold any resentment towards my people like some of your politicians." He smiles, or at least I think it's a smile. "Very progressive of you Scorpio. We share a similar mindset. The Humans were in the wrong according to laws they didn't even know existed. The captain of the cruiser that lead that first assault against the Human fleets had a lapse of judgment and caused a war over a miscommunication." He nods to his own words.

I cross my arms, "Our ancestors have an amazingly similar tenancy for stubbornness."

He coughs as he drinks the rest of the bottle of Tupari and laughs quietly, "You have cast the right net Scorpio, our people need to work together more often then not. War solves nothing." He sets the empty bottle down on the counter and stretches his neck a bit before going serious, "Now, what was the information you wanted to inform me of?" He asks, slightly flabbergasted.

_Straight to business huh, ok._

"The incidents that happened nine days ago were connected." I pause, hoping he would understand what I was talking about.

He frowns after a moment, seemingly aware of what incidents I was talking about, "How?" He asks while walking past me and into the living room.

I follow him and try to explain, "I was there, I... saved the girl and...killed the General." I internally cringe at how brute that sentence sounded.

_It sounded a lot less like a confession in my head._

His talons twitch towards his weapons as he scowls dangerously, "You? What happened!" His sharp eyes search my face for answers so I give them to him.

I sigh in exhaustion and walk past him to quickly turn the bed back into a couch before sitting down. He stays where he is.

_Probably deciding whether or not to kill me._

"I haven't been on Thessia long. Only about..." I thought about how long it's been for a moment to get it right. "Thirteen days? Anyways, I was walking down the street in the markets, towards _The Chained Krogan_ to find some weapons and armor when I heard a noise." My vision blurs with the memories of the past and I let them wash over me, I needed to tell him it exactly as it happened from my perspective...

* * *

"A cry, quiet, full of fear. My eyes search for the familiar sound. None to be seen. Another... my feet lead me quietly into the ally to my left. Eyes adjusting, my vision is clear as I see a Turian holding down a young Asari child. Frustrated grunts echo silently through the dark space. Sneaking in closer I see the Turian was beating the girl into a pulp. Rage filled my soul as I stood behind him and screamed 'FUCKING GET OFF HER NOW!' I throw a massive wave of biotic energy against the naked Turian, pushing him off of the whimpering girl. Fear in her eyes, she hides behind me as I slam wave after wave of biotic energy into the staggering Turian until, finally, I force all of my energy out in a throw field. Smashing the Turian into the far wall, cracks from his bones and plates breaking filled the air as his screams alerted the local police to the incident..."

* * *

Slamming my eyes shut I cut off my Solipsism and shake my head clear of the emotions it brought up. "He was trying to rape her, so I stopped him. That's how I learned about my biotics, I nearly caused permanent neural scarring on my spinal cord from the exertion and was in a coma for eight days. The Turian General died on the operating table from blood loss and organ failure. The little girl..." I search my thoughts for the name, "Mila was her name, she's the daughter of Matriarch Lidanya. You can get an eye-witness report from officer Rila at APC. She's the one who saved me, and stayed to make sure I was alright." My voice at this point is hollow, void of any emotion.

As I finish the story and look up to see Nihlus' reaction. His mandibles are wide in what I assume is shock and his eye-plates complimented the look, since they were as high as they could go.

H blinks for a moment before closing his mouth, "Well... shit. I'll have to investigate this and talk to some people. If what you say is true... then we have a major political incident just waiting to be uncovered." He starts walking towards the door before stopping and looking over his shoulder, "Oh, and thanks for the Tupari, it was quite delicious, and for listening, you have a way of getting people to divulge their secrets you know?" He turns back to me.

I nod, "I studied to be a psychologist in college before ending up here so I'm a good listener."

Nihlus smiles nervously, "I think I'm going to avoid telling Saren about how I gained this information, he'd throw something at me if he hears about you."

I smile before internally face-palming and lowering my mask and hood to smiling at him properly. "I think that's for the best, come by anytime by the way. If you need someone to talk to who's not you wife or_ Saren_, then you're free to stop by for some Tupari and a place to rest."

He bows to me and I stand to mirror it. "I'll contact you when I've finished the investigation. If your telling the truth then you'll need some closure when this is all over." He walks out, leaving me standing there in slight shock.

_God that was tense. He isn't Saren but he's definitely not harmless. I can't believe he actually listened to me! Well, I guess having a good memory means something?_

Shrugging I take a deep breath and let it out slowly to get over how strangely good it felt to tell someone about it.

_He's really an intelligent person, I knew he didn't despise Humanity, but now I think I might have made a friend in him. _

Relaxing into the couch, I went over my mental list of what I could do today.

_Now that that's over with, I can focus on something other than my mental health. __Well, I've got to learn how to maintenance my own weapons eventually, also I've got Seila coming over later to help me build that omni-tool._

Opening up my Reaper's case I grab the smooth, clean red and white metallic body of the sniper rifle and hold it in my hands for a moment before activating it. A strange elation comes over me as I hold the fully armed rifle in my hands, I place the feeling as protection, security. I look down the sights and frown at how inaccurate they were. I tweak the nobs on the side of the scope for a bit, making the sighting as perfect as possible.

_I love working on weapons, whether it be my dagger or my father's AR-15 rifle it brings a kind of peace of mind to me knowing how to work these dangerous weapons._

Without LIA able to help me, I access the Extranet and start looking for manuals on my weapons.

_This is going to take a while._

* * *

After an hour and a half of tinkering and cleaning, I finish, content that my weapons were decently maintained and working properly.

_It's still strange being here, in this universe. It seems so familiar, yet unknown. I feel like an explorer of a new world. A world so alien and different that no-one else had even dared to understand it, and yet I can. Hmph, my parents always marveled at how quickly I could adapt to a situation, now I know what they mean._

Packing up my weapons and sheathing my dagger back into it's housing, I sit back on the couch and think about what else I could do while I waited for Seila to arrive.

Meditate, make breakfast, watch the news... Well, I could try looking up stocks like I used to do in my free time back in my home universe.

I call up my omni-tool and search for stock trades. selecting the first option for a better view, the page brings up a report about a Hanar mining company going under due to investors taking all of their money out of the company. Wondering why, I open up the attatched news report and figure out it was due to an outsourcing problem with the Hanar's automated eezo mining equipment, where it costs just slightly too much to mine compared to places like Omega or the Volus Mining Company.

Hmm... well I always liked a challenge.

I create an account to trade with and dump two thousand credits into it. Then I buy up a massive amount of the mining company's stocks at less then 13 credits a piece. I also put forward some purchases of other manufacturing companies around Asari space to balance out any potential losses.

I hope I didn't just waste my credits on a worthless idea, but I did the same as soon as I turned 18 in my own universe and gained a 200% profit within the first quarter so who knows.

I smile at the look on my mother's face when I told her I paid for a new gaming system, my health insurance, car insurance, and this semesters tuition in college with the earnings.

_She was so freaked out! I could have sworn I saw her mind freeze up when I finally finished how much I paid for! Unfortunately the second quarter plummeted and I had to pay nearly all of what I gained back, but it was a good run non-the-less._ _I wonder how long it'll be before I see a profit this time? Probably a few months at least._

*beep*

I'm thrown out of my thoughts instantly from my omni-tool alerting me that I have a new message. Checking it, I frown.

_Sender: unknown_  
_Receiver: unknown_  
_Subject: unknown_

_Dear Scorpio, We have confirmed your arrival has been according to schedule. Do not be alarmed by our knowledge of you. We will not do you harm. We are requesting that you meet us at the address below. _

_453 Strip-drawn dr. Armali, Thessia. _

_Further instructions will accommodate you on arrival._  
_~D_

_What the hell?_

Thinking about what a risk it was I decide to not go to the address as I turn off my omni-tool and walk into the kitchen to make something to eat.

_I'm not falling for that trick. I'll let the messed up aliens deal with the micro-techs._

...

"Ok, I REALLY need to get more sleep. I'm starting to loose it even more then usual." I shake my head and before grabbing everything I need to make an omelet and sipping a Levo-Tupari as I get to work.

_Ok, so who is this 'D'? I don't know anyone with that as the first initial from either universe._

I flip the omelet to cook evenly and turn the temperature down before grabbing a plate and fork.

_My old name is Dylan, no that IS my name!_

I shake my head angrily.

_I am NOT going to loose myself in Scorpio's life!_

Lowering my head tiredly, I close my eyes and try to get over the rushing thoughts that are spiraling around in my head.

"Let those without a destiny, for the years we spent in darkness, be called upon to state our legacy." I take a deep breath after quoting my thoughts and plate the omelet.

"I know I'm here for a reason, whether I'll know that reason any time soon is up to the Universe." Walking into the Living room, I sit down and quietly eat my breakfast, not wiling to watch the news or a movie, they would just worsen my mood.

* * *

As I finish up the last of the omelet, someone knocks on my door. I quickly finish up my Tupari and toss the plate in the sink before opening the door to find Seila.

"Oh hey Seila!" I smile as I greet her.

She looks up from her omni-tool, slightly startled. "You do know that the Asari attendant is watching a porno in the lobby right?" She says as she walks inside to place her materials onto the coffee table.

I shut and lock the door, "Actually it's Vaenia, an Asari romance movie."

I stand next to her as she shakes her head and places a bracket out on the table. "Well, it didn't look like that from where I was standing! She was staring at the screen!" She sighs as she starts to take out small bars of metal. "I'm forgetting about it. I have everything we need to create a new omni-tool. I spend half the morning scavenging the materials from a recycling plant downtown."

Ok, well, I'll have to reimburse her for her time then.

I rub my gloved hands together, "Alright, so where do we get started?" She takes a band of metal and starts burning lines of copper into the surface while I follow her orders to the letter...

* * *

"Ok, so now you need to do the hard part, sinking up the dark matter stabilizers." I nodded at Seila's instruction and held my omni-tool as stable as humanly possible as I started fusing the two sinks together...

*BEEP* "Ah!" I jump back from the half-fabricated omni-tool and hope to god I didn't just wreck something important.

"Scorpio what are you doing?!" She all but throws me away as she jumps into action to finish the delicate work of fusing the two micro-bombs together before the timing gyros went out of sink.

"Sorry! Sorry, my omni-tool beeped and it scared me!" She waves her free hand at me to shut up and I back away slowly before walking into the kitchen for a breather. "Phew, Goddess is this intense..." I chug half of a TUpari and shake my adrenaline rush off before closing the fridge and walking back into the living-room/bedroom to watch the master work. Seila's hands move with absolute precision as she ever-so-carefully finishes one of the most dangerous parts of constructing an omni-tool.

_I am SO glad she decided to jump in and fix what I did. I would have blown myself up by now if it wasn't for her stepping in to help._

I activate my omni-tool and tap open the message to see it was the exact same one from before, still asking me to go to 453 Strip-Drawn dr. Armali Thessia.

_Why are they asking me? What's so important that whoever these people are keep hounding me?_

I close the message and go back to watching Seila redo some of my choppy welds on the casing...

* * *

_1632..._

I sigh in frustration as I closed the same message AGAIN, Seila had to rebuild a lot of what I did this morning and I was getting a bit short with whoever keeps sending me these damn messages.

"Scorpio! Pay attention! This is delicate work!" I blink and redouble my efforts of holding the thin casing for the band in place.

"Sorry, these messages are distracting me."

"Then block the sender already! I am sick of having to redo your _Bosh'tet_ work because you get distracted too easily!" She chides me while multi-tasking on her omni-tool to check the polarity of the dark matter stabilizer we were having trouble with.

"I think that might be a problem at the moment." I was holding two wires up to different areas of the one millimeter thick Tornic engine under a microscope Seila could somehow fit in one of her suit pockets.

_I'll need to ask her about that later._

"*SIGH!* Then shut up and move one wire to circuit 871 and the other to conductor 322 before I smash your head through the foot-rest!" Seila screams.

"Coffee table." I refute

"Whatever! Just do it you Ho'lek!" She says furiously.

I cringe and carefully shift the wires around, "Is it aligned yet?" I could hear her typing franticly behind me.

...

...

"Well?" I try and bend my head back to see what she was doing.

"What? Oh yes, fuse them where they are, its properly polarized." She says calmly, as if nothing was wrong.

I bite back a Quarian swear I learned from her around noon and fuse the wires in place before finally taking my hand off the microscope. "Ok, what's next?" I ask reluctantly. I turn around and watch her as she scrolls through the checklist I typed up on a data-pad.

Her gloved finger stops and she nods, "It looks like all that's left is the start up." She throws the data-pad off to the side and knocks a crate of used up metal scrap off the coffee table and all over the floor.

I glare at her angrily, "Hey watch it!"

She shrugs, "What? It's scrap metal."

My left eye starts to twitch as my biotics start to flare up, "Yeah, and it's on MY floor!"

She folds her arms over her chest, "*Scoff* YOUR floor! You do realize you could own a starship for what you pay in rent for a year?!"

I stand up abruptly and point a finger in her face, "At least I HAVE ambition to live in a place thats better looking then that HOVEL you and your BOYFRIEND share!"

She scowls and slaps my hand away to jab a finger into my armored chest, "HE IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND HE'S A GUY THAT HAPPENS TO BE MY BEST FRIEND!" She pushes me back. "And who are you to judge Mr. ANTI-SOCIAL!" She shouts.

I hold nothing back, "Oh YEAH?! Well at least I'm not a CRAZY CONTROL FREAK WITH A NARCISSISTIC ADDICTION TO OMNI-TOOLS!"

She slaps me across the face, "IT IS NOT AN ADDICTION!" I look back at her just in time to be tackled onto the coffee table. She yells as she flips me over and pushes my face into the cold metal surface, "APOLOGIZE YOU HO'LEK GRE'LIN TORISHIK BOSH'TET!"

She wrenches my arm behind my back painfully with her in-human strength, "GAH!" I scream in pain.

"APOLOGIZE!" Seila commands.

"FINE FINE! I APOLOGIZE NOW GET OFF ME BEFORE-" The coffee table collapses under our combined body weight and all the parts around us are tossed every-which-way as the thin metal bends around the two crates I kept under the table. "-that happens." I finish before sighing.

Seila lets go and backs up as I flip over and look up at her hand in my face, I grab it and she helps me stand up. We look around at the mess we made and stay quiet as we start to clean it up.

* * *

Ten minutes later we kick two boxes of spare scrap next to the bent pieces of what once was a cheep coffee table and sit down on the couch.

...

...

...

...

"So, uh..." I look at her as she breaks the awkward silence. "I-I'm sorry for the foot-res-"

"Coffee table" I correct.

She pauses to scowl at me for a moment, "Coffee table, I was just..." She lowers her head and wrings her hands nervously.

_Really really frustrated._

I hold her hands still with my own and she looks up at me, "It was an outburst, no-one got hurt, everything is fine. We were just stressed from trying to build the omni-tool and it all built up to us yelling at each-other to burn off steam, oh uhh... relieve stress." She nods slowly and I let go of her hands.

She nods as she looks over at the trashed coffee table. "I-It was an outburst, nothing more. Right. I'm sorry for, well, tackling you. Your not mad at me are you?" She starts wringing her wrists again as she looks back at me worriedly.

I laugh, "If I got angry at everyone who I've had a shouting match with I'd be one bitter nineteen year old."

She jumps back and blinks before asking, "You're only nineteen? I never thought you were that young! I mean you are a bit young, but I expected you to be in your mid twenties!"

I sigh and shake my head, "All the stress I've dealt with has aged me a bit faster then I'd like."

She stops wringing her hands and reaches into one of her pockets, "I-I found your omni-tool in the corner a-and thought you probably would still want it so-" I hold up a hand to stop her nervous babbling. I accept the omni-tool and slip it onto my left wrist before activating it. The blood-red display starts up and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

_I am SO glad this thing didn't blow up._

Seila seems to agree since I hear a content sigh come from her side of the couch. "Oh good, I thought I stepped on it when we were cleaning up! Thank Keelah that it works after all that crazy Del'ik that happened." I nod in agreement and she starts walking me through the menus so I knew how to sink it up to any new hardware I might encounter in the future. "Now tap the twelfth key on the second row and your done! You just installed LIA properly."

I smile at her brightly, "Thanks Seila, always nice to know a crazy Quarian that's good at tech."

She scoffs, "Not like knowing a psychologically insane Human who can hack anything!" She laughs as I blush from the half-compliment. She stands from her spot on the couch and stretches before turning towards the door, "Well, I'll see you later Scorpio, maybe next time we go out for lunch or something?"

I rush forward and open the apartment door as she walks out and wave to her as she walks down the hall. "Yeah, sure. Try not to break my coffee table next time!" She shakes her head and walks out of sight.

_She is one crazy chick._

I close and re-encrypt the door before looking down at my new omni-tool and smiling.

_This thing is going to be SO useful if I ever get into firefights._

Linking up my other omni-tool to the new one like Seila taught me, I download the Blood-red display into my other one and smirk at the duel holographic casings that covers my forearms.

_Yep, going to love this._

"Scorpio! It is interesting to note that you have been neglecting your messages since I was deactivated." I freeze up as i hear the voice.

I look down at my left omni-tool and smile at the familiar and emotionally excited voice, "LIA! I haven't been so happy to hear a VI's voice since I got into that car crash and had to talk to SIRI to get help." I state happily.

_It's truly been hell not being able to talk with her, it, whatever._

"I have no record of this other VI, would you mind if I made an inquiry?" LIA states calmly.

"Uh, sure I guess..." I say curiously, wondering what she could be asking about.

"What do you believe happens when we die?" LIA states with a calm curious seriousness.

I stop moving and think about the answer for a moment.

...

"Scorpio?" LIA asks, I open my mouth to reply, but nothing comes out.

...

_For some reason I just can't respond. I know how I feel about the subject, but I never really thought others would ask me about it._

"I... What do YOU think about the subject LIA?" I ask curiously.

"I do not, I am a simple VI." She/it replies.

"Really?" I asks, trying to wonder if the quiet inflection LIA gave when she/it spoke meant anything.

"Yes." LIA responds quietly, almost shyly.

...

_Well this is getting awkward._

"Scorpio, you have not told me your own opinion yet." She/it asks, still relatively quiet.

...

I take a seat on the couch, this was some heavy stuff, "I... I think that... people should choose what they believe in." I pause to collect my thoughts and I can feel LIA waiting patiently. "I personally think that their ability to choose is-"

"Scorpio?" LIA interrupts.

"Yes." I say, still wondering if LIA was developing a personality or not.

...

...

"LIA?"

...

"I have found eight people within forty meters of your location with the same views, do you want me to add their contact information?" LIA states happily. I stare at my omni-tool and blink for a moment.

_Ok, that was weird..._

"No. Merci LIA." I breath out in slight relief.

"Logging you out Scorpio." I sit back and think about what just happened.

_Oh man..._

I burst out laughing. "OH GOD! HAHAHAHAHAHA! I thought... HAHAHAHAHA!"

_Oh my god my sides are hurting!_

"HAHAHAHAHA-"

*BEEP*

I freeze and look down at my new omni-tool. "Scorpio, you have a new message." LIA states.

"Merci LIA" I opened the message to find...

_Ok, now I'm getting a bit angry._

It was the same exact message from this morning. I delete every message.

_It's the best I can do since I don't really want to block them until they do something else. This could just be a looping message like when someone tried to leave voice mail at my grandparents house and it kept resending the message eight times a day until they replaced the answering machine._

As soon as I delete the message I start feeling lightheaded and my vision starts to blur before refocusing on a hooded figure in front of me. "Gah!" I jump back in shock, and accidentally flip backwards off the couch and yelp before trying grab at my side for my pistol and find it not there. "Oh this is bad, oh this is not good!" I mutter in a panic as the figure started to approach slowly.

_Oh god this is confusing._

I grab my head as a bell rings loudly. "Get away!" I scream while slamming my eyes shut and shaking my head. I open them to see nothing there and the bell was gone.

_Ok, what the hell was that?!_

I rub my temples in aggravation.

_I really don't need these things to happen today!_

I growl angrily and leave the apartment while wondering what the hell that vision was all about.

_I'm not insane, I'm not insane, I'm not insane..._

I keep repeating it over and over as I lock the apartment door behind me and jog out through the lobby to find the attendant looking extremely depressed and alone, sobbing quietly to herself as she murmurs the simple question, "Why?", over and over again. I approach her and I notice a pool of tears forming on her desk.

_My freak-out can wait, she looks like hell._

Stopping my pace I ask softly, "Hey, are you alright?"

She looks up at me tiredly and sniffles a bit before closing her eyes tightly and cringing, "You heard me?" Her voice was quiet and broken.

I swallow as I feel her terrible sadness, "Yeah, you want to talk about it? Maybe go get some tea to clear your head?" She sniffles as a tear falls down her cheek and stands up.

She follows me, hunched over in her own mourning state as we head out the front door and up to my skycar. "Thanks." She says before climbing in and sitting comfortably in the passenger seat next to me.

I nod to her, "No problem, everyone needs some company when your in such a state, it helps to have someone who cares about you cheer you up." She nods reluctantly and sniffles again before slowly relaxing into the seat as the sky car speeds off towards a nearby café LIA chooses.

_I am tired as hell, confused as hell, and probably getting dangerous as hell, but I'm not leaving her to her own devices, not when I can help._

"So..." I try and break the ice. She looks at me cautiously, like I was extremely dangerous.

_Oh! I have the mask up!_

Setting the skycar to LIA's control I pull my mask down and let my hood fall back onto my shoulders and look at her as she stares at me silently. After a moment she sighs, "I don't know why I'm saying this, but my girlfriend and I just broke up." I nod my head in understanding. "She was so nice and cute, loving, and the sex! Oh goddess! She could blow my mind!" She smiles at the fond memories and I try to avoid blushing.

I turn and look her in the eye, "It's hard to lose someone you're so close to that you can't even fathom life without them at your side." As I say it my mind wanders to Liara and I internally shake my head.

_She doesn't like me like that._

A flash-memory of us walking on the beach runs through my mind and I smile slightly before re-focusing on the conversation. "Yeah, I never really thought about it, but I was ready to be her Bondmate!" She holds her head in her hands and cries.

_She's so vulnerable right now, I need to comfort her._

I am about to place a hand on her shoulder, but remembering the Extranet's translation of that gesture to Asarian I settle for hugging her gently for a short moment. Her crying sub-sides so I try and separate but she wraps her arms around me and snuggles into the groove of my neck. "I never thought I'd feel this alone again." She mutters.

Slightly uncomfortable I hold her as she calms herself. "It's alright." I whisper into her 'ear' as she relaxes into my arms and holds me tighter.

_Ok, this is getting a bit weird._

I freeze in panic as I feel her kiss a trail up my neck and towards my lips. Just before our lips meet my mind restarts and I pull away, leaving her confused and teary-eyed. "I'm sorry, I already have a girlfriend." I lie cautiously.

_No need to upset her anymore then she already is._

Surprisingly she just smirks, mischief twinkling in her deep-purple eyes, "Oh, alright, maybe I can join you?"

_What?!_

"What?" Oblivious to my absolute shock, she lays a hand on my leg and smiles deviously. I swallow in even more panic then before, "Uhh..."

_How do you answer something like that?!_

She leans towards me, forcing me to lean back until my head hits the driver-side door. She all but crawls over me until her face was mere inches from my own, "I can make it pleasurable..." Her vibrant violet eyes stare into my dark brown ones with a barely contained ferocity that reminds me of a wild animal.

_Think! What would your mother do if she caught you like this?! What would Mark say?!_

I finally find my voice as she moves in for the kiss. "I... uhh... don't want to be rude, but Liara and I aren't to that point in our relationship yet." I say truthfully.

She pauses in her advance and watches me for a moment before blushing and practically jumping off of me as if I was going to burn her, "Oh, um... I'm sorry, I just, I'm a Maiden so my, uh... hormones are raging like hell, and I'm really sorry!" She says in apology quickly.

She shies away and blushes violently as she continues to apologize until I raise my hand to stop her, "It's fine it's fine. I know what the stages do to young Asari."

She sighs and shifts awkwardly, "So... Liara T'soni?"

I nod at her, grateful for the change in subject, but worried about the new one, "Yeah, we hang out here and there. We haven't really talked about a relationship." She opens her mouth to respond, but before she can we land and the doors open to show the beautiful Thessian skyline.

I look down and see the bustling of the city below us as the café was on the twentieth floor of a hotel in the financial district. An attendant from the café offers to park my skycar but I wave her off and instruct LIA to do it instead. The attendant took a simple VI doing her job in stride and leads us inside.

I look around the standard-looking café, nothing too exciting. The decor mirroring the vibrant colors of the small plants that sat at every table.

_How quaint._

The waitress brings us to a table in the center of the room and we both order a cup of Asarian coffee.

I break the ice after sipping the beautifully sweet and bitter blend of black coffee and vanilla that was apparently a mild version of the native brew. "So how did you meet your girlfriend?" I ask.

She stirs her coffee and sighs before smiling, "She was actually standing behind you when you moved into the building. She and I had an instant connection."

_Oh, ok. That's about five days at the most. Really short for an Asari._

"Was it strange, being able to fall so deeply in love with someone so quickly?" I ask calmly.

She looks at me before looking away, "Yeah, it was fast, and wild, and... perfect." She sighs and goes back to stiring her coffee. "But now she's gone, because of me." Tears start to form in her eyes.

"You and her had sexual relations? How soon after meeting was this?" I ask as comfortingly as a person can manage with half a year of study under their belt.

She scowls at me, "We didn't have sex until last night!"

I hold up my hand calmly, "I did not mean to aggravate you, but you can see easily that this person was using you." I theorize.

She stares at me wide-eyed for a second before opening her mouth to speak and closing it sadly. She speaks in a soft voice, "Yes, I can see that, and she did. She took all of my credits and left."

"She stole not only your savings, but your heart as well." I say. She nods. "It isn't your fault then, it's hers. She chose to steal from you and you were just caught up in the moment. You did have fun though and that was what this person took advantage of. I suspect you have not been in many relationships before?" She nods again, looking a little bit curious. "You have a low experience in what having a true girlfriend or boyfriend is. You couldn't have known her intentions."

_This is seriously interesting, I'm using my skills at reading people to help her get over her break-up!_

She sips her coffee and takes a deep breath. "I don't want to be hurt like that ever again." She says quietly.

I smile, "If you get to know people before jumping into bed with them, say four or five dates, then you can minimize your chances of being robbed of your emotions and cash."

She blinks before sighing and finishing off her coffee. "Thanks, umm... I don't know your name." She says while looking at me expectantly.

I look further into her eyes to see her sadness brought under control and her natural curiosity blooming once again, "I'm Scorpio, and you are?"

I make a subtle hand gesture to direct the question at her and she smiles, "I'm Neril," My whole body tenses and I try to avoid letting it show on my face. "Nice to meet you Scorpio, but I need to get back to work." She stands and I quietly wave goodbye as she walks out the door.

_Oh god._

I flag down the waitress, "Hey, did you see me with another person just a few minutes ago? Did I arrive with anyone?" I ask worriedly.

She stares at me like I'm insane before saying, "Yeah, pretty, young, attractive Asari Maiden with deep Purple eyes. She ordered a Thessian coffee and so did you."

I breath a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, here for your trouble." I pull out a chit and load a hundred credits onto it before handing it to her.

Her eyes brighten up and she kisses me on the cheek before saying, "Come back anytime honey." I naturally cough before paying the twenty credit bill while failing at hiding my blush as she clears the table and walks away.

_I need to get back home._

Turning towards the exit I blink for a second.

_Wait... is that, Liara?_

I walk up to her and she smiles slightly as she notices me, "Hello Scorpio, what are you doing here?" She asks, her hands already fidgeting.

I smile back and say, "Not much, just getting a cup of coffee, you?"

She blinks before looking around, seemingly lost. "I am not so sure anymore, I was coming to make up to Shiala through buying her favorite cup of coffee, but now that I am here I am unsure whether it is a good idea or not."

I blink for a moment before remembering how Shiala usually went out with Liara during her birthday dinners to cheer her up. "Oh, ok. Do you require assistance?" I ask.

She looks at me for a moment before sighing, "I- no no I do not require assistant in this matter, although now that you are here I wish to tell you something." She gestures for us to sit and we do, at the same table as I did before.

_I wonder what this is about._

"I h-have not heard from you for a while. I was wondering if you were alright?" Liara says nervously, her eyes darting around the room.

_She's also a nervous wreck in public._

I forcibly stop my leg from idling. "I'm sorry, I haven't had too much time to myself over the past few days. You want to hang out now?" I ask carefully.

Her eyes widen in what I would assume shock, "I-I don't know, yes?" I could see her hands fidgeting in her lap as she turns her head left and right, eying the other patrons nervously.

_Huh, paranoid as well, it's like we're a perfect match._

I carefully holster the armed pistol I had under my left thigh in precaution and steady my breathing, "So what did you want to talk about?" I ask calmly.

She stops looking around and starts to relax, "Oh, nothing really important. I'm fine. I'm just worried, the news says that the _Eclipse Mercenary Group_ are pushing to build a front for illegal weapons tech on Thessia."

I raise my eyebrows and look at her in surprise, "Really? Huh, that's not good." Her head nods in agreement as she looks at the table and shifts uncomfortably.

*beep*

She jumps at the noise and I raise a hand to calm her before checking my omni-tool for the new message.

_I know I'm jumpy but man is she on edge today._

It was that same message from the Unknown sender again. I shake my head tiredly, "Liara I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to take this outside for a moment."

She blinks and her eyes dart around the room before she whispers that it's fine and starts twiddling her fingers on-top of the table.

_If it was fine I wouldn't be having hallucinations everything other day._

Walking outside I lean against the building and delete the message, half expecting another hallucination to pop up at that moment. When nothing happens I sigh in relief and turn to walk back inside only to nearly walk into Liara as she practically dashes through the still open door.

I grab hold of her to keep both of us from kissing the sidewalk and she gasps loudly before looking directly into my eyes.

_Huh, we're the same height, how have I never noticed that before?_

"I-I have a meeting a-and need t-to get to it at the University, so I-I need to go." She stutters out the response in her shocked state.

"That's fine, how about we reschedule for Saturday? After my first class at AAH?" I say, a bit hopeful.

Her arms held onto my own as a smile creases her worried features. "Ok, just be careful."

We let go and her hands immediately started wringing her wrists nervously so I covered her hands with my own to stop them, "Don't worry Liara, I'll be fine." I say comfortingly.

She visibly relaxes to my touch and becomes more rigid when I let go. "Wait, I... I think I like you, as a friend!"

_What?_

She cringes at her sudden outburst and lowers her head in what looks like shame.

I watch her for a moment in surprise before lifting her chin up to I could look her in the eyes, "I... I think we're a bit out of our element." I say plainly as I let go.

Liara smiles as a light blush creeps up her neck, "I have never met anyone like you Scorpio. Oh, I am keeping you from your coffee, my apologies." I wave her concern aside and follow her to her taxi before waving to her as the skycar took off towards what I would assume is the University of Serrice.

_I don't know how or why, but every time I'm around her I just feel right, calm, collected..._

I rub my eyes tiredly and barely stifle a yawn before walking back inside and sitting back at my table.

_I didn't sleep at all, I should go take a nap after another coffee._

"Waiter!" Half the patrons stop what they're doing to turn and look at me strangely so I lower my hand and try to escape my terrible blush from under my hood and mask.

_Ok, I'm REALLY tired if I just called out for a waiter inside a coffee shop on Thessia, in the Mass Effect Universe.  
_

I pick up the electronic menu on my omni-tool and order again before leaning back and closing my eyes for a few winks of sleep.

* * *

**Fires melting flesh from bone, a hundred screams echo from the incinerators only to be muffled out by the Batarian's insane laughter. I scream at him and try to attack only to find myself restrained. "I'll kill you!" I heard myself shout, but it wasn't my voice. It was dead and full of rage.**

* * *

*GASP* I yelp awake and notice my coffee was slammed onto the table by an annoyed Asari waitress. "Sleep on your own time!" She growls before turning towards a family that just arrived and welcoming them politely.

_Bitch I liked the other one better._

I shake my head clear of the short nightmare and pound back the coffee, ignoring how it burned all the way down as I stormed out of the Café while tossing a credit chit at her and saying an abrupt _thank you._

I don't hear her reply as I jump into my skycar that LIA brought back from parking and take off towards the shooting range.

_I need loud, random noises to wake me up. God, why do I keep dreaming of slavers and death! It's getting annoying!_

I sigh and shake my head before giving LIA the controls as usual and sitting back to relax for a bit.

_I need to meditate more often, this is getting worse the longer I stay here._

*BEEP* "You have arrived at your destination Scorpio." I look up and I don't recognize the building my skycar was pulled up to.

_What the hell?_

Checking the address I froze. 453 Strip-drawn dr. Armali, Thessia.

"Oh shit-" Something hit me on the back of the head and I black out.

* * *

_**"You are mine now Scorpio... You can't run..."**_

_I turn around and around but I can't see anything but pure darkness. "I'm not running!" I shout at the voice._

**_"YOU LIE!"_**

_A loud screeching blasts at my ears, forcing me to fall to my knees in pain as I cover my ears..._

* * *

"AHHHH!" I scream out in pain from what feels like my arm being ripped from my body. I look involuntarily at it to find it broken and the pain abruptly stops from what I can sense as adrenaline rushing through my veins.

"Are you ready to talk now?" A sharp voice says right in my ear as I pant in my huddled position.

I start shaking in fear as I stand up, "Whoever you are I'll comply, just ask me and I'll answer to the best of my ability." The words aren't mine, it wasn't with my voice, it sounded like a Turian's. I tell my body to move and I can't, I'm rooted to the floor.

"Good..." I could hear the smile in his voice. He sounds like he's enjoying this. "Now where are my shipments?" My head whips around to him in shock and I see his face, blood-red with faded white stripes going down from his horns to his lips. He's a Salarian. He slaps me and I groan in pain for some reason. "Speak!" He orders.

"I don't know, please!" The Salarian punchs my head, throwing me to the floor. I heard a distinct click and turned onto my back to see the barrel of a gun for a split second before a flash.

Everything goes white, then dips back into the impenetrable darkness...

* * *

I open my eyes and I look around to see I was still in my skycar at the address, but with a piercing headache.

*BANG*

I jump from the sound of a gunshot and look over to see shadows inside the building to the left of the address, an apartment building.

_No..._

I dash out of my skycar and draw the pistol that I don't even remember bringing with me before crouching under a broken window. I listen to a conversation inside. "There, that's another body for the pile, I need a drink." It was the voice from my vision.

"Fuck!" I mutter quietly to myself.

_What the hell is happening to me? Ok, I think I've asked myself that question over a hundred times in the past five days, I should just stop._

Another gunshot hits my eardrums and I cautiously peek inside to see a Blue Suns trooper fall to the ground, dead. I scan the room quickly and see seven others in a pile in the corner, all dead, including a few Turians.

_What the hell is going on?!_

The Salarian from my vision walks out of the shadows wearing Eclipse armor. I blink before ducking out of view and remembering something Liara said about Eclipse moving in on Thessia for weapon smuggling.

_Oh fuck! Ok, so think! Think!_

I keep remembering the Salarian say _shipment_ and I realize something.

_Oh shit, I seriously hope they aren't talking about the shipment I blew up. No no that was purely Blue-Suns territory, no way they're connected._

In a panic I quickly rush over to my skycar and send a quick message to Rila at APC about the address before flooring it out of there.

"Why, why in all of Thessia did my vision bring me there?! I'm not ready to kill people out of no-where! I'm not even that good an aim with a pistol!" I shout out loud to voice my frustration as I let LIA direct the skycar to go back to my apartment building and let myself mull over what just happened.

_I'm going insane, I'm going insane, I'm going insane..._

*beep* "Scorpio, you have a new message." Lia states in her synthetic chipper mood. I check it, grateful for the distraction and cringe at the familiar Unknown sender.

_What the hell do they want from me?!_

I scroll down and the only thing the message said was, "Your welcome." I scowl at the message and delete it. "Assholes. I'm not ready for any of this! I can't fight mercs, I can barely keep myself sane anymore!" I yell in exasperation at my situation.

_I can't, I just can't deal with any more of this! I'm not an assassin, I'm not a murderer, I'm not even from this freaking universe!_

When I land in the parking lot of my building I get out, walk past the smiling attendant as she waves at me, unlock and re-lock my door, and fall onto my couch in exhaustion from my long as hell day.

_Just a few hours of rest, thats all I'm asking for. No death, no destruction, no weird hallucinations, please..._

I don't even change out of my armor before I roll over and finally let myself pass out.

* * *

A/N I've got nothing to say but, what would you do in his situation? You know, going insane, seeing people before meeting them, such and such. :)


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